The Kansas City Chiefs won their fourth game in a row on Sunday, defeating Denver in the final regular-season contest at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
Here are some quick notes and facts about the game.
1. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes secured his second-career 5,000-yard campaign.
Mahomes completed 29-of-42 passes for 328 yards and three touchdowns on Sunday, securing his second-career season with 5,000+ passing yards and 40+ passing touchdowns. He's now just the second player in NFL history to hit those marks in multiple seasons, joining Drew Brees. He also tallied his 10th 300-yard game of the season on Sunday, matching the highest single-season total of his career (he also did so in 2018).
Mahomes' 5,377 combined passing and rushing yards this season are the fourth-most in NFL history, and with just 186 yards in Week 18, he'll secure the all-time single-season record. Additionally, Mahomes' 5,048 passing yards this year ranks as the 13th most by any player in league history. With 50 passing yards on Saturday, he'll set a new personal season-best.
2. Tailback Jerick McKinnon continued to be a touchdown machine.
McKinnon has been incredibly productive in recent weeks, tallying eight total touchdowns in his last five games. In fact, McKinnon is the first running back since 1966 to record at least one touchdown reception in five-straight games.
He has seven receiving scores in that span and eight on the season, which leads all running backs and ranks seventh among all players. Only Davante Adams (14), Travis Kelce (12), A.J. Brown (11), Stefon Diggs (10), Amari Cooper (9) and George Kittle (9) have more touchdown catches than McKinnon this year.
He leads all players in receiving scores (7) since Week 13.
3. Tight end Travis Kelce recorded his 100th catch of the season.
Kelce now has 104 receptions this season, and with two grabs on Saturday, he'll record a new career-best. The future Pro Football Hall of Famer now has 100+ receptions and 1,300+ receiving yards for the third time in his career, joining just 10 other players in league history to hit those marks in three or more seasons. Only Marvin Harrison, Andre Johnson and Antonio Brown (who each did so four times) have more such seasons than Kelce.
Additionally, Kelce is the only player in franchise history to tally multiple seasons with 100+ receptions. He's also the only tight end in NFL history to do so, and with 808 career catches now to his name, Kelce owns the league record for receptions by a tight end through 10 career seasons. That feat is impressive enough on its own, but keep in mind that Kelce played in just one game during his rookie campaign.
4. Tailback Isiah Pacheco was back in the end zone.
Pacheco tallied his fourth touchdown of the season on Sunday with a 5-yard rushing score early in the game. He now ranks third among all first-year players in rushing scores and sixth in rushing yards (766). The term "first-year" is used in this case rather than "rookie" because the leader in first-year player rushing yards – Jaguars' tailback Travis Etienne – was drafted last year but didn't appear in any games.
The 22-year-old Pacheco also ranks seventh among all first-year players in scrimmage yards (896) this season. For further context, four of the players ahead of him on that list were first-round picks, and none were selected later than the sixth round. Pacheco, of course, was a seventh-round selection.
5. Tight end Blake Bell tallied his first-career regular-season touchdown.
Bell hauled in the first regular-season touchdown of his career on Sunday, catching a 17-yard score early in the fourth quarter. It was his second-career score including the playoffs, as he also hauled in a touchdown during the Chiefs' victory over the Houston Texans during the 2019-20 postseason.
The score was a great sign for Bell, who was appearing in just his second game this season after missing significant time due to a hip injury suffered in August.
6. Defensive lineman Chris Jones continued his monster season.
Jones made perhaps the defensive play of the game on Sunday when he sacked Broncos' quarterback Russell Wilson on fourth down in the contest's closing minutes. A conversion in that moment would have inched Denver in sight of kicker Brandon McManus' range for a potential game-tying field goal, but Jones ensured that such an outcome didn't occur.
It was Jones' 13th sack on the season – which ranks fifth in the NFL – and his 11th sack in his last 11 games.
7. Defensive end George Karlaftis recorded his fifth sack in his last six games.
Karlaftis also had another productive day, recording his fifth sack since Week 12. Those five sacks rank ninth among all players in that span, and his 5.5 total sacks on the season rank third among all rookies.
Additionally, Karlaftis' 43 total pressures this season rank second among all rookies to only the Detroit Lions' Aidan Hutchinson (50).
8. Cornerback L'Jarius Sneed hauled in an interception at the perfect time.
Sneed picked off Russell Wilson on the Broncos' first play of their 10th possession, hauling in Wilson's pass and returning it for 25 yards. It was Sneed's third pick of the year, matching the career-best he set in 2020.
His three picks this year lead all Chiefs' defenders. He's one of six players to tally an interception this year for Kansas City.
9. It all helped the Chiefs win their 15th straight game over the Broncos.
Kansas City has now won 15 straight games over Denver, matching the third-longest winning streak for any team against a single opponent in NFL history. Only the 1970-1979 Miami Dolphins (20 vs. Buffalo) and the 1990-98 San Francisco 49ers (17 vs. the Los Angeles Rams) compiled longer streaks against one opponent.
The Chiefs also moved to 25-4 vs. AFC West opponents since 2018 with Sunday's win, which is by far the best record for any team against their own division in that span.
10. Kansas City has now won 13 games for the second time in the last three seasons.
The Chiefs secured a 13th victory on Sunday for the second time in three seasons, as Kansas City won 14 games in 2020. That recent stretch of success is significant, too, considering that prior to the 2020 campaign, the Chiefs had won 13+ games just three times (1995, 1997 and 2003).
This is truly the golden era of Chiefs' football, and with the top seed in the conference still in play, Kansas City will aim for its 14th victory of the year this upcoming Saturday against the Las Vegas Raiders.
