KANSAS CITY, Mo. — That’s (a little) more like it — eh, Chiefs Kingdom?
The Kansas City Chiefs avoided the first three-game losing skid in Patrick Mahomes’ tenure as starting quarterback with a comfortable 27-17 win Sunday against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
“I was glad with how the guys responded and that we were able to find a way to win against a really good team,” Mahomes said.
After once again falling behind in the first half, the Chiefs pulled away with 17 unanswered points in a 6-minute span on either side of halftime.
Kansas City (9-5) got off to a slow start again on offense with a missed field goal, a three-and-out and an interception on three of its first four drives.
The Chiefs also got a touchdown on a pop pass from Jerick McKinnon to Rashee Rice late in the first quarter but trailed 10-7 before closing the half with an 11-play touchdown drive.
McKinnon capped the drive with another red-zone score on an 8-yard pass from Mahomes with 35 seconds left until halftime, giving Kansas City the lead at the break.
The Chiefs engineered another 11-play drive to start the second half, netting a field goal, before a Willie Gay Jr. interception set up the offense at the Patriots’ 7-yard line.
“He was so close on the one — the one that was a touchdown to the tight end,” Kansas City coach Andy Reid said. “He was so close on that thing, so he got a little deeper there and was in good position. Little different route, but he did a nice job with it. Willie’s one of the better athletes on this football team.”
Two plays after Gay's pick, Mahomes floated a 6-yard touchdown to a leaping Clyde Edwards-Helaire in the back of the end zone.
New England never seriously threatened from there as Harrison Butker added a 54-yard field goal for a 17-point lead before yet another dropped pass from Kadarius Toney led to an interception that allowed the Patriots to punch in a fourth-quarter touchdown.
That drive, which started at Kansas City's 29-yard line, was the only blemish for the defense in the final 34-plus minutes.
Cornerback L'Jarius Sneed recorded a game-high nine tackles, including eight solo stops and two for a loss, while safety Justin Reid added seven and both safety Mike Edwards and linebacker Leo Chenal had six.
Sneed also had two passes defended, while Derrick Nnadi, Jaylen Watson, Drue Tranquill and Charles Omenihu sacked Bailey Zappe, who finished 23 of 31 but only totaled 180 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
“They played great,” Mahomes said of a defense that allowed 10 second-quarter points but shut New England down in the second half. "The biggest thing is you see how they can make adjustments in-game. ... That takes a special group of guys.”
Mahomes finished 27 of 37 for 305 yards, his first 300-yard game since throwing for 424 yards in a Week 7 win against the Los Angeles Chargers. He had two touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Chiefs had lost four of six games entering the showdown between two future Hall of Fame coaches, Andy Reid and Patriots coach Bill Belichick.
They have won a combined eight Super Bowls and 557 regular-season games, the most ever for an NFL matchup.
Belichick is 7-5 all-time against Andy Reid.
With the win, Kansas City leads the AFC by two games. The Chiefs have won seven straight AFC West titles and could add to that division-record streak with a win next week and a Broncos loss.
“You’ve got to learn from the mistakes, keep doing it and keep getting better, and try to be playing our best football going into the playoffs,” Mahomes said.
RED-ZONE CREATIVITY: On the Chiefs’ first trip to the red zone, Andy Reid dug deep in the playbook for a nifty touchdown from the Wing T formation.
McKinnon, a former college quarterback turned NFL running back, took the direct snap from Joe Thuney, who swapped spots with Creed Humphrey for the play, with Mahomes lined up to his left, squatting down like an old-school halfback.
Rice came on the reverse and caught — after a heart-stopping bobble — a pop pass from McKinnon for a 4-yard touchdown.
Tight end Blake Bell, who lined up as an offset fullback, served as the lead blocker, escorting Rice across the formation, as Kansas City grabbed a 7-0 lead late in the first quarter.
Rice finished with team-highs of nine catches and 91 yards, recovering his own fumble on the opening drive of the second half to avoid a disaster.
CLYDE'S BIG DAY: Stepping in for an injured Isiah Pacheco, running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire totaled more than 100 yards from scrimmage.
He only had 13 carries for 37 yards, but he added four catches for 64 yards — including a nifty, leaping 6-yard touchdown in the second half.
Edwards-Helaire, a 2020 first-round pick who's struggled with injuries through his first three seasons, lost his starting job to Pacheco last season.
Sunday marked his first game with more than 100 yards from scrimmage since totaling 74 yards rushing and 44 yards passing in Week 2 last season against the Chargers.
TONEY’S ROUGH DAY: After emerging as the top target of fan ire when his offensive offside penalty, which NFL officials suddenly started calling like crazy this weekend, erased a possible game-winning touchdown last week against Buffalo, Kadarius Toney wasn’t able to atone to Chiefs Kingdom.
He had two more drops, including one that was intercepted and led to a Patriots touchdown in the fourth quarter.
It turned a 27-10 cakewalk into a somewhat more unsightly 27-17 win.
On the sideline after the interception, his second of the game, Mahomes appeared visibly frustrated after the tip-drill turnover.
Toney finished with two catches for 5 yards.
He had another quasi-drop when Mahomes appeared to expect him to sit down in a zone to avoid running into a linebacker, but Andy Reid signaled his continued support.
“We’ll see how things go,” Andy Reid said. “I’m not down on Toney. He does some good things. He’s a young guy, so we’re not talking about somebody that has been in this league a long time.”
Instead, Toney, who has 27 receptions for 169 yards with multiple key drops this season, kept running and couldn’t complete the catch with the ball behind him.
Toney famously dropped a pass, which Detroit safety Brian Branch returned for a touchdown, and flubbed another easy catch that would have moved Kansas City into field-goal range during a one-point season-opening loss.
THE BUTKER MISSED IT (THEN MADE EVERYTHING ELSE!): After marching 42 yards on five plays, the Chiefs’ offense sputtered because of — wait for it! — a penalty.
Rice, a rookie second-round pick from SMU, was flagged for offensive pass interference, erasing a 16-yard Kadarius Toney catch and run.
Kansas City settled for a 39-yard field-goal try.
Harrison Butker entered the game perfect on 23 field-goal attempts and 31 extra-point tries this season, but he pushed the opening-drive effort wide right.
New England responded with a 10-play drive, but Chad Ryland missed his 41-yard field goal attempt as the game remained scoreless.
Butker rebounded to connect on two extra points later in the first half and drilled a 29-yard field goal to open the second half and another extra point before drilling a 54-yard field goal late in the third quarter.
KELCE DINGED: After an 11-yard catch and run in the closing minutes Sunday at New England, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce appeared to hurt his elbow.
He went to the sideline after the play in obvious pain, but he did not appear to receive medical treatment and returned after one play.
"He got a little stinger in there and came out for a bit, but he went back in," Andy Reid said.
Kelce finished with five catches for 28 yards, and that 11-yard reception was his longest of the game.
WAS TAYLOR SWIFT THERE?: Yes, yes she was — and the Chiefs improved to 5-2 with Taylor Swift on hand for a game.
She’s been in a suite at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium for games against Chicago (Sept. 24), Denver (Oct. 12), the Los Angeles Chargers (Oct. 22) and Buffalo (Dec. 10).
Swift, who is the “Time” magazine Person of the Year and is famously dating Kelce, also showed up for road games at the New York Jets, Green Bay and now the Patriots.
“I’m a big fan, so I’m glad she was here, and I hope she enjoyed it,” Andy Reid said. "She's got a great guy she's dating right now, so I'm happy for both of them."
INJURY UPDATE: Wide receiver Skyy Moore (left knee) got knocked from the game and had a swollen knee, according to Andy Reid.
UP NEXT: Kansas City gets its only noon kickoff at home this season, but it comes on Monday — Christmas Day — at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
The Chiefs welcome the Las Vegas Raiders, who blew a two-touchdown lead in a 31-17 loss to Kansas City in late November, needing another win to keep their hopes for a playoff bye and home-field advantage in the AFC alive.
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