The Kansas City Chiefs remain perfect this season, moving to 4-0 to start 2020 after beating the New England Patriots (2-2), 26-10, at Arrowhead Stadium. The end result doesn’t exactly paint a picture of how close this match will be as it wasn’t exactly the sharpest night for defending Super Bowl champions. However, that was enough for podcasts.
Patrick Mahoms struggled early, but came late, helping Kansas City in back-to-back relegation races in the last two quarters to secede from New England. For those Patriots, it was a tough night as Brian Hoyer took charge of Cam Newton, who was out of action after testing positive for COVID-19. He completed 15 of his 24 passes at just 130 yards, without relegation, selection, and faltering before being replaced by second-year midfielder Jarrett Steadham.
Both defenders played well in this match as they were each able to turn around and allow a total of 16 points during the first three quarters, but the Kansas City attack woke up in time to beat Bill Belisik and his teammates. While we’re putting this game in the books, check out the main takeaways below.
Why Kansas City Won
The Presidents were able to withstand a tough start offensively and upset the switch late in the second half. After the defense regained a bump by Brian Hoyer in the third inning, Patrick Mahomes led Kansas City in the 85 yards distance that led to their first touchdown in the match. This led to successive landing attempts to attack Andy Reed, which were enough of the defense to help repel the attack of the humble Patriot. Speaking of that defense, they’ve managed to create four transformations of the night, including a pick of six by Tyrann Mathieu to erase any kind of comeback talk with Jarrett Stidham under the Patriots Center.
Although not one of his strongest performances, Mahomes was able to finish with a 236-yard pass and 65 percent completion with two touchdowns. He also rushed 28 yards. Arguably Rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Hillier was his best match since the opening match, sprinting 64 yards and picking up all three of his goals for an extra 27 yards.
Why New England Lost
The Patriots surprisingly overcame themselves – rare for Bill Belisik’s squad. The first example in the game’s opening tour came by Kansas City when Devin McCurty gave up safety that was perhaps the easiest interception opportunity he had in his career. In the end, the Chiefs couldn’t fully take advantage of that missed opportunity but went out with a field goal.
The next two mistakes were made by Brian Heuer. With the passage of time before the first half, the Patriots player took a bag in third and ninth places instead of throwing the ball away. That forced the watch to hit triple zeros in half, and the Patriots – who were inside the Chiefs’ line 10 yards – walked away without points. The nail in the coffin came on Hoyer’s Night on a tape bag that also fell deep into the Kansas City lands, then pushed Jarrett Stedham under the center.
The last significant failure for New England – which ultimately proved the difference – was a pass sent by Steadham that hit Julian Edelman’s hands. The veteran recipient couldn’t pull it, the ball was directed and deflected by Tyrann Mathieu, who took 25 yards into the finish zone to give Kansas City the 26-10 lead. This was basically a ball game.
turning point
After a tough start to the match, Brian Hoyer seemed to be slowing down in the third quarter. He completed five of his six passes at 57 yards as he led the New England attack all the way to the five-yard Kansas City streak. However, at that point, the veteran midfielder made his second turn in the game, floundering in the Kansas City 16-yard streak.
The Chiefs recovered and were remedied to go on a seven-game 85-yard trek that resulted in Tyreek Hill receiving the landing. Hoyer was replaced by Steadham in the New England campaign that followed.
Play the game
While the Patriots were at the losing end of this game, Jarrett Steadham was throwing the night: N’Keal Harry’s vanishing into the corner of the end zone for the first team drop in the game. That was Steadham’s first drive when he came to the bench for Brian Hoyer, who deserves a little credit given the few delegates he received throughout the week. He only finished passing 60 yards, and that landing and two interceptions, but that toss would have been a small flash of potential in the long run.
Damian Harris’ 41-yard dash on this trip also deserves some serious attention after he impressed his second-year comeback in his debut of 2020, as he lunted 100 yards at night.
What’s Next
From here, the Patriots will return to Foxboro and prepare to host the Denver Broncos at Gillette Stadium before their sixth week Bay. As for the heads, they’ll stay around Arrowhead Stadium and wait to visit the Las Vegas Raiders. This match with New England started a difficult period for the Super Bowl champions because they are in the middle of a short week to prepare for Las Vegas, then they will visit the Buffalo Bills on Thursday Football Night to start their sixth week. These are three matches in just over a week.
“Introvert. Avid gamer. Wannabe beer advocate. Subtly charming zombie junkie. Social media trailblazer. Web scholar.”
