The Kansas City Chiefs wrapped up the regular season with a victory on Saturday, defeating the Las Vegas Raiders to lock up the top seed in the AFC playoff field.
Here are some quick notes and facts about the game.
1. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes just competed one of the best regular seasons in NFL history.
Mahomes completed 18-of-26 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown on Saturday, tallying his league-most 10th game of the season with a passer rating of 100.0 or higher. He finished the campaign with 5,250 passing yards – the fourth-most for any player in NFL history – and 5,614 combined yards of offense (5,250 passing, 358 rushing and 6 receiving), which marks the highest single-season total in league history. The previous record was held by quarterback Drew Brees, who racked up 5,562 total yards in 2011.
Overall, Mahomes completed the 2022 season by leading the NFL in passing yards (5,250 – 511 more than second place), passing touchdowns (41 – 6 more than second place), passing first downs (272 – 35 more than second place) and passes of 25+ yards (49 – 14 more than second place).
2. Running back Jerick McKinnon continued his historic campaign.
McKinnon caught his ninth touchdown of the season on Saturday, which ranked sixth in the NFL among all players in 2022. His nine receiving scores were the most by a running back in a single season since Marshall Faulk tallied nine receiving touchdowns in 2001.
McKinnon's streak of six-straight games with a touchdown catch marked the longest for any running back in NFL history.
3. Tailbacks Ronald Jones and Isiah Pacheco also found the end zone on Saturday.
Jones rushed for 64 yards on 10 carries – both season-highs – and his first touchdown of the season on Saturday. He averaged 4.5 yards-per-carry on his 10 attempts, including a long of 13 yards.
Pacheco, meanwhile, tallied 64 yards and a touchdown on eight attempts. It marked his seventh game with at least 60 rushing yards since Week 10, matching the Las Vegas Raiders' Josh Jacobs and the Cleveland Browns' Nick Chubb for the most such games in the NFL during that span. The rookie tailback finished the season with 960 total yards from scrimmage (830 rushing, 130 receiving) and five total touchdowns.
4. Wide receiver Kadarius Toney scored his third touchdown of the season.
Toney recorded 44 yards from scrimmage (26 rushing, 18 receiving) on Saturday, tallying his third touchdown of the season on an 11-yard rush. He wrapped up the regular season with 115 total scrimmage yards and a score over his final two contests.
The 23-year-old Toney continues to gradually integrate himself into the offense, taking the field for at least 16 snaps in each of the last three games. He played 16 snaps against Seattle, 19 against Denver and 18 against Las Vegas.
5. Defensive lineman Chris Jones put together another monster game.
Jones put an exclamation point on his stellar campaign during Saturday's game, recording six quarterback hits and 2.5 sacks. His six quarterback hits were tied for the second-most by any player in a single game over the last four seasons, and his 15.5 sacks on the year matched a career-best (15.5 in 2018). That sack total ranked fourth in the league.
In addition to Jones, defensive end Mike Danna (2 sacks), safety Justin Reid (1 sack) and defensive end George Karlaftis (0.5 sack) also got after the quarterback on Saturday. Those six sacks as a team matched a season-high, and overall, the Chiefs' 55 sacks on the season ranked as the second-most in franchise history. It's worth noting that the Chiefs also notched a ridiculous 14 quarterback hits during Saturday's game.
Additionally, Karlaftis' half sack meant that he completed his rookie season by recording at least a half sack in six of his final seven games. His 5.5 sacks in that span – which began in Week 12 – ranked 12th in the NFL. The former first-round pick finished third among all rookies in sacks this season with six, trailing only the Detroit Lions' Aidan Hutchinson (9.5 sacks) and James Houston (8 sacks).
6. Linebacker Nick Bolton set a franchise record for tackles in a single season.
Bolton racked up 16 combined tackles in Saturday's victory, pushing his season-total to 180 while passing Derrick Johnson (179 in 2011) for the most in a single season in franchise history.
Bolton finished second in the league in total tackles behind only the Jacksonville Jaguars' Foye Oluokun (184).
7. Safety Juan Thornhill hauled in his third interception of the season.
Thornhill recorded his second pick in the last three weeks when he pulled in an interception deep down the sideline early in Saturday's game. It was part of a dominant performance by Kansas City's defense, which forced two takeaways (the other being a forced fumble by Mike Danna) and held the Raiders out of the end zone until the 6:37 mark of the fourth quarter.
The Chiefs held the Raiders to 0-of-2 on fourth down and 1-of-3 in the red zone, yielding a touchdown on Las Vegas' third attempt when the game was already out of reach.
8. Punter Tommy Townsend compiled another strong performance.
Townsend was tremendous on Saturday, dropping three of his four punts inside the Raiders' 20-yard line. He dropped a 37-yard punt to the Raiders' 5-yard line, a 61-yard punt to Las Vegas' 4-yard line and a 39-yard punt to their 10-yard line. Additionally, Townsend blasted a 59-yard punt from the Chiefs' 13-yard line to flip the field.
The third-year punter finished the regular season by leading the NFL in net punting average (45.6 yards) while ranking second in total average (50.4 yards). Both figures were the highest single-season marks in franchise history.
9. The Chiefs completed the season with a perfect record against the AFC West.
Kansas City went 6-0 vs. AFC West opponents in 2022, joining the San Francisco 49ers as the only two teams to sweep their respective divisions. The Chiefs are now 26-4 against divisional opponents since 2018, which is by far the best record for any team against their own division in that span.
Patrick Mahomes remains undefeated (16-0) against AFC West opponents on the road.
10. Kansas City's 14 wins matched a franchise record for victories in a single season.
The Chiefs tallied 14 wins this season for the second time in franchise history, matching the output achieved by the 2020 team. Furthermore, Kansas City's 64 regular-season wins since 2018 are the most in the NFL and 10 more than second-place.
It was simply another outstanding season for the Chiefs, but the work is far from over. Kansas City has much larger goals than just regular-season success, and with the top seed in the AFC now in-hand, the Chiefs will set their sights on a Divisional Round matchup at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in a few weeks.
