Patrick Mahomes passed for 286 yards and three touchdowns in less than three quarters and the Kansas City Chiefs moved ahead of .500 for the first time this season with a 31-0 shellacking of the visiting Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday afternoon.
Rashee Rice was credited with two touchdown receptions while making his season debut following a six-game suspension for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Marquise “Hollywood” Brown also had a scoring grab and Isiah Pacheco ran for a touchdown as the Chiefs (4-3) beat the Raiders for the 14th time in the past 16 meetings.
Kansas City held Las Vegas to 95 total yards and three first downs while posting its first regular-season shutout in the all-time series since 2011 against the then-Oakland Raiders. The Chiefs began taking kneeldowns with 2:36 remaining in the one-sided contest.
Geno Smith completed 10 of 16 passes for 67 yards for Las Vegas (2-5). Ashton Jeanty had just 21 yards on six carries.
Raiders star tight end Brock Bowers (knee) missed his third straight game. Standout defensive end Maxx Crosby injured his left knee on a low block from Kansas City tight end Noah Gray in the second quarter and didn’t return. Crosby also is dealing with a back injury.
Mahomes completed 26 of 35 passes as Kansas City had 434 total yards and 30 first downs while controlling the ball for over 42 minutes. Rice caught seven passes for 42 yards.
Kansas City traveled 92, 84 and 94 yards for touchdowns on its three first-half possessions. The Chiefs had huge edges in total offense (275-51), total plays (42-14) and first downs (21-2) in the half.
Kansas City’s first scoring drive was capped with Mahomes’ 2-yard touchdown flip to the in-motion Rice with 5:58 left in the opening quarter.
The Chiefs made it 14-0 on Mahomes’ 8-yard scoring pass to Brown with 9:17 left in the second quarter. Kansas City tacked on another touchdown when Mahomes connected with Rice on a 3-yard touchdown pass with 10 seconds remaining.
The Chiefs began the second half with the ball and they continued the domination with an 11-play, 65-yard drive. Pacheco scored from the 1 to make it 28-0 with nine minutes left in the third quarter.
Kansas City didn’t score a touchdown for the first time on its next possession, settling for Harrison Butker’s 38-yard field goal to make it a 31-point lead with 2:36 left in the third quarter. Mahomes called it a day at this point and Gardner Minshew finished up at quarterback.
Kenny Pickett replaced Smith for the Raiders in the fourth quarter and fumbled his first snap. The Chiefs’ Jerry Tillery recovered at the Las Vegas 11-yard line with 7:04 to play.
–Field Level Media
