5 takeaways: Chiefs put NFL on notice by dominating Broncos to open season

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Kenneth Walker III scored two touchdowns and showed breakaway ability unseen in the Kansas City Chiefs backfield since Kareem Hunt was a rookie in a 31-10 dismantling of the Denver Broncos to open the season on Monday Night Football at Arrowhead Stadium.

The Chiefs didn't run for more than 158 yards in any game last season and the ground game topped 150 yards twice in 2024.

But powered by Walker, who finished with 23 carries for 173 yards, Kansas City blew past 200 yards rushing for the first time since an Oct. 1, 2023, win at the New York Jets on Sunday Night Football.

“I saw him last year in the Super Bowl doing the same thing, in camp doing the same thing, so there’s never a doubt when 9 touches the ball what he can do,” defensive tackle Khyris Tonga said.

The Chiefs finished with 38 carries for 220 yards, the most since totaling 245 yards on the ground at Buffalo during the 2020 season.

1. Mahomes serves notice on opening drive

Patrick Mahomes served notice that he will not be babying his knee or avoiding contact, despite being nine months removed from a major knee reconstruction.

Mahomes suffered a torn ACL and LCL in his left knee on Dec. 14, 2025, late in a demoralizing loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.

He returned to action exactly nine months later and capped his first drive back with a 15-yard scramble for a touchdown.

As the pocket collapsed around him, Mahomes tucked the ball and took off, splitting a pair of Broncos defenders and outrunning two more.

“They dropped back and they had a lot of attention on Trav and then on Rashee, so it opened perfectly down the middle of the field for me,” Mahomes said.

Near the goal line, Travis Kelce blocked Talanoa Hufanga while Mahomes secured the ball as he dove, absorbing a shot from safety Brandon Jones to land on the goal line for his 20th career rushing touchdown.

“That was definitely the moment physically to say, ‘All this work has paid off,’” Mahomes said. “I didn’t feel anything.”

Otherwise, it was far from a vintage Mahomes performance. He moved fine but generally struggled, including a rough interception to set up Denver’s third-quarter field goal.

Mahomes started the game 2 for 12 for 14 yards. He finished 15 of 27 for 184 yards with two touchdowns, including a 13-yard second-quarter touchdown to Rashee Rice and a 2-yard touchdown on a nifty misdirection pop pass to Walker.

Other than the interception, Mahomes settled in to go 13 of 15 for 170 yards, including six first downs as the Chiefs pulled away for the win.

2. Walker brings new dimension

The Chiefs’ first four offensive snaps were run plays, including a fourth-and-2 effort with Hunter Nourzad as a sixth offensive lineman and Khyris Tonga as a wishbone fullback.

If the goal was to send the rest of the NFL a message about Kansas City’s intentions on offense this season, it was received.

Walker had seven carries for 32 yards on the Chiefs’ first possession of the season, a 10-play touchdown drive.

He finished the first half with 14 carries for 89 yards, adding two catches on five targets for another 16 yards.

It only got better after halftime.

After getting stuffed on a first-down run, Walker bounced a fourth-and-1 run outside — with Tonga leading the way — and took it to the house from 60 yards out.

“We were just looking for the first down,” Tonga, who served as lead blocker on the play, said,” for him to score was amazing.”

The longest run by any Kansas City running back during the last two seasons was 34 yards.

Walker’s 60-yard touchdown was the longest for a Chiefs player since Damien Williams’ 91-yard touchdown in a Week 9 matchup against Minnesota on Nov. 3, 2019.

“In that situation, you’re really just expecting like a 2- or 3-yard run,” backup guard Hunter Nourzad, who saw action as an extra blocker multiple times, said. “When you a running back pop out and you see all that open space, it’s really exciting.”

He also had a 28-yard run earlier in the game, in a tackle-breaking display unseen in Chiefs Kingdom since 2021.

Walker’s 173 yards were a career-high and tied for 15th-most in a game in franchise history. He also had three catches for 18 yards, giving him a career-best 191 yards from scrimmage.

“I told you all the first press conference — you all asked what was different with our offense and I said, ‘K9,’” Mahomes said. “It’s just that simple. ... It’s just a special ability to run the ball tough between the tackles and then, when he does bounce it, he has the speed to go all the way.”

It was the second time in Walker’s career he had a rushing and receiving touchdown in the same game.

“Phenomenal, I can’t say enough about that guy,” left tackle Khalil Benson said.

3. Chiefs pass rush shows juice

Kansas City did OK generating pressure last season, but it seldom affected the play in a meaningful way.

The Chiefs ranked in the top half of the league in pressure rate, but only six teams finished with fewer sacks last season.

Kansas City tied for 26th in the NFL with 14 turnovers created.

But the Chiefs pass rush showed up from the start, especially Lee’s Summit native and former first-round pick Felix Anudike-Uzomah. The fourth-year defensive end reduced inside on third-and-obvious passing downs, generating consistent pressure one-on-one against the Broncos’ interior offensive line.

“Today, you could see his versatility — moving him inside, outside, he played a little bit of three technique in there if you go back and watch the tape,” linebacker Nick Bolton said of Anudike-Uzomah. “He’s doing a lot of different things for us, a Swiss Army knife.”

Anudike-Uzomah’s pressure helped force Nix’s interception on the first drive, and he had a third-quarter strip-sack, which Chris Jones recovered, in a similar situation.

“Felix has been doing it all camp and I think he’s finding his stride and who he is and how he can be,” Tonga said. “We’re excited to see what he can do.”

Rookie defensive end R Mason Thomas, who was a second-round pick in April, also got in on the act with his first career sack.

“As he (Nix) drops back in his progression, he likes to step up, so we had a feel for it,” Thomas said. “Converting my pass rush, hit a little spin and then, as I was falling I just threw out my arm and prayed to God that I hit him.I barely could see him to be honest.”

Nix finished 17 of 28 for only 131 yards with a touchdown, an interception and three fumbles lost. He was sacked four times, and the defensive line also bottled up the Broncos on the ground.

Denver only managed 61 yards rushing on 15 carries.

4. Faith in young corners rewarded*

There were plenty of heads a-scratching when the Chiefs traded Trent McDuffie and let Jaylen Watson walk in free agency.

With the prevalence of pass-heavy NFL schemes, cornerbacks with shutdown skills are valuable commodities, but Kansas City rolled the dice that it could replace the 2022 draft picks.

Nohl Williams, a third-round pick in 2025, impressed the Chiefs’ coaching staff last season to slot into one corner spot, while GM Brett Veach moved up to No. 6 overall for LSU’s Mansoor Delane.

Both impressed Monday, but that comes with a massive asterisk.

Delane intercepted Bo Nix on the game’s first third down, stepping in front of Courtland Sutton 15 yards downfield.

“That was a great way to start the game,” Reid said.

Unfortunately, Delane, who was limited during training camp with a right shoulder injury, left the game after being tackled following the pick. He was first considered questionable to return with a shoulder injury before being ruled out for the game.

But Williams was a consistent menace. He sacked Nix on the game’s first snap and sniffed out a screen pass for a 5-yard loss, though an offside penalty negated the play.

Williams also blanketed Troy Franklin deep downfield in the closing minutes for a turnover on downs that helped ice the win. He finished with three tackles and a pass defense.

Sutton finished with only two catches for 11 yards, while Jaylen Waddle, acquired in a trade with Miami during the offseason, managed just one catch for 2 yards.

5. Kelce’s still got it

Veteran tight end Travis Kelce — whose wife Taylor Swift attended the game with Tom Cruise, a crazy sentence to type after a summer filled with World Cup hysteria — finished with three catches for a game-high 71 yards.

That included a 59-yard catch-and-run, which set up a 28-yard Harrison Butker field goal late in the third quarter.

It was the longest reception of Kelce’s career since 2021 and the 54 yards after the catch were his most since 2016, according to Next Gen Stats.

“Kels, he dusted it off,” Reid said. “Three for 71 (yards), that’s pretty good for an old man.”

Charlie Riedel/AP Photo/Charlie Riedel

Injury report

Delane (shoulder) did not return after the first drive.

Linebacker Cooper McDonald left the game after suffering an apparent knee injury on the kickoff after the Chiefs’ first touchdown. He went straight to the trainer’s table on the sideline, but McDonald remained on the sideline.

Both Chiefs players were ruled out at halftime.

Up next

The Chiefs (1-0) host the Indianapolis Colts (0-1) on Sunday Night Football at 7:20 p.m.

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