The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Denver Broncos, 31-10, in dominant fashion on Monday night to kick off the season with a victory.

Here are some quick notes from the win.

1. Tailback Ken Walker had a debut to remember.

Walker was nothing short of outstanding on Monday night, amassing a career-best 191 total yards from scrimmage.

His 173 rushing yards marked the second-most by any veteran in their debut with a new team in NFL history, and his 14 broken tackles led all players in Week 1 (and doubled the tally accumulated by the next-closest player). Those 14 broken tackles were the most by any member of the Chiefs in the NextGen Stats era (since 2018).

Walker racked up 179 yards after contact on Monday night – by far the most of any player in Week 1 – and if adding the reigning Super Bowl MVP during the offseason didn't put the league on notice already, Walker's performance against Denver certainly did so.

Additionally, as a team, the Chiefs racked up 220 yards on the ground throughout Monday's game, marking Kansas City's highest single-game total since the 2020 season.

2. Tight end Travis Kelce continues to make NFL history.

Kelce hauled in three receptions for 71 yards on Monday night, which included a 59-yard catch-and-run midway through the third quarter.

That aforementioned catch made some history, too, as Kelce passed Jason Witten for the second-most receiving yards by a tight end in NFL history with 13,073. Only former Chief Tony Gonzalez, with 15,127 career receiving yards, recorded more than Kelce.

3. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes found the end zone three times in his return to the field.

Mahomes, who took the field exactly nine months to the day after suffering a season-ending knee injury in 2025, didn't waste any time finding the end zone on Monday night.

The three-time Super Bowl MVP scrambled for a 15-yard touchdown on Kansas City's opening series, quickly calming any early nerves about his mobility while setting the tone for the rest of the night.

Mahomes completed 15-of-27 passes for 184 yards and three total touchdowns in the game (including his rushing score). It was the 81st game of Mahomes' career in which he threw multiple touchdown passes, which leads the NFL since 2018.

4. Rookie offensive tackle Kahlil Benson yielded just one pressure in his NFL debut.

Benson, who earned a roster spot following a successful tryout at Rookie Minicamp in May, was tasked with a mighty challenge in his NFL debut as he lined up across from Broncos' edge-rusher Nik Bonitto, whose 27.5 sacks over the last two years rank second in the NFL.

Despite those circumstances, Benson, who didn't log a snap at left tackle during his collegiate career, not only held his own on Monday – he excelled.

The rookie left tackle yielded a grand total of one pressure on 32 pass-blocking snaps throughout Monday's game, according to NextGen Stats. That makes for a  pressure rate allowed of 3.2%, marking the best of all rookie offensive tackles in Week 1.

Benson would likely be the first to say that there's plenty of area for growth moving forward, but as far as Week 1 debuts go, Monday was nothing short of tremendous.

5. Kansas City broke 28 tackles on Monday night.

A cornerstone of Kansas City's success on Monday night was its collective ability to churn additional yards after contact.

The Chiefs broke a ridiculous 28 tackles throughout the game, according to NextGen Stats, which led to 247 yards after contact – the most such yards allowed by any defense since at least 2018.

Other than Walker, whose 14 forced missed tackles obviously led the team, another player who stood out on Monday was rookie tailback Emmett Johnson, who forced seven total missed tackles as both a rusher and receiver.

6. The Chiefs' defense held Denver to a 2-for-12 mark on third down.

Kansas City entered the offseason with a mandate to improve on third down, and following Monday's performance, it appears the message was received.

The Chiefs held Denver to a 2-for-12 mark on third down throughout the game, which included holding the Broncos short of the line to gain on nine consecutive third downs to end the matchup.

That performance helped Kansas City limit the Broncos to just 176 total yards of offense, which marked Denver's lowest output since the 2021 season.

In other words, Kansas City held Denver to an average gain of just 3.7 yards while the Chiefs averaged nearly six yards-per-play on the other side of the ball.

7. Kansas City's rookie class made play after play on Monday night.

If Walker was the story of Monday's game, the Chiefs' rookie class was a close second.

Numerous rookies stood out throughout the game, including Kahlil Benson who – as discussed above – yielded a grand total of one pressure at left tackle. Cornerback Mansoor Delane logged an interception on just his third snap as a professional, edge-rusher R Mason Thomas tallied a sack, and defensive tackle Peter Woods recorded a batted pass at the line of scrimmage to go along with a quarterback pressure.

Offensively, tailback Emmett Johnson racked up 68 yards from scrimmage, which included a critical, 25-yard catch-and-run that moved the chains on third down and helped to put the game away.

The future is obviously bright in Kansas City, but as these rookies demonstrated in their collective NFL debut, the present is looking strong, too.

8. The Chiefs pressured Broncos' quarterback Bo Nix on more than half of his dropbacks.

Nix was under pressure on 51.5% of his dropbacks during Monday's game according to PFF's metrics, and on those snaps, the third-year quarterback completed just 4-of-13 passes for 11 yards and an interception.

Five different players recorded multiple pressures in the game, including defensive end George Karlaftis (4), defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah (3), linebacker Nick Bolton (3), defensive lineman Chris Jones (3) and defensive end R Mason Thomas (2).

Kansas City also managed to sack Nix four times over the course of the contest.

9. Cornerback L'Jarius Sneed led the Chiefs in tackles as he began his second stint in Kansas City.

Sneed, who embarked on his second stint with Kansas City on Monday, seemed to pick right back up where he left off in 2023.

The veteran cornerback led the Chiefs in tackles against Denver, which included four "defensive stops," a PFF metric that logs a play considered a failure by the offense.

Sneed tallied 33 snaps in the slot on Monday night, returning to the spot where he enjoyed so much success within Steve Spagnuolo's defense early in his career.

10. Head Coach Andy Reid notched the 150th win of his Chiefs career.

Reid hit another career milestone on Monday night, securing the 150th victory of his brilliant career in Kansas City.

The future Pro Football Hall of Famer is already the franchise's all-time leader in terms of wins, and now with another victory under his belt to begin the 2026 season, Reid will aim to keep the Chiefs in the win column this upcoming weekend as Kansas City takes on the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday Night Football.