The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the New York Jets, 35-12, behind a three-touchdown performance by tailback Ken Walker on Sunday afternoon.
Walker, who now has 10 total touchdowns in just eight games, paced Kansas City with 143 yards from scrimmage as Kansas City racked up its highest point total of the season.
"[I was] proud of the guys for the job they did," said Head Coach Andy Reid. "Coming off the two losses that we had, and a slow start here, we were able to rally on both sides of the ball and on special teams."
Indeed, Walker's strong day helped the Chiefs outscore New York by a mark of 35-6 following a sluggish start in which Kansas City trailed through the entirety of the first quarter. In fact, the Jets manufactured a methodical, 14-play scoring drive on their opening series that ate up more than eight minutes of clock, but despite driving to the Chiefs' 5-yard line, Kansas City's defense forced New York to settle for a field goal.
New York then had another shot at a touchdown – and a potential two-score lead – just a little bit later when the Jets recovered a fumble in Chiefs' territory, but once again – and as would continue throughout the game – Kansas City's defense didn't yield an inch.
The Jets turned the takeaway into just three points, and following a stretch in which New York seemed to possess all of the momentum, the tide was about to turn.
That shift began when quarterback Patrick Mahomes found tight end Travis Kelce for a 17-yard completion on third down to ignite Kansas City's ensuing possession, and from there, the Chiefs were off to the races.
The play sparked a 10-play, 82-yard series that ended with a 7-yard toss to Walker, providing Kansas City with a lead that it never gave up.
Kansas City's defense, meanwhile, held New York to just 165 yards of total offense following its opening drive. That effort included five sacks, as defensive linemen Chris Jones and George Karlaftis each recorded multiple sacks on the day.
Karlaftis, in particular, filled up the stat sheet with three tackles-for-loss, two sacks and a batted pass at the line of scrimmage.
"[We were] just being relentless," Jones said. "[It was a matter of us] being relentless [and] playing tight man coverage on the back end."
That performance helped Kansas City to hold New York out of the end zone for the entirety of the contest, and scoreless throughout the second half. For some additional context, the Jets – who trailed by just two points entering halftime – netted -9 yards in the third quarter, and a grand total of just 46 yards in the second half overall.
That defensive effort paired well with a Chiefs' offense that found the end zone on three of its five true possessions following halftime, and for the game, Kansas City was a perfect 4-for-4 in terms of red zone touchdown efficiency.
"It started with that first drive [of the second half on] both sides of the ball," Mahomes said. "Offensively, we were able to get down there, have a good drive and score a touchdown, and then defensively, get a stop. A lot of times, when you get that momentum – especially coming out of halftime after you've made adjustments – you can kind of ride that through the rest of the game. We were able to do that [today]."
As for the injury report, wide receiver Xavier Worthy (hamstring) and offensive tackle Jaylon Moore (ankle) left Sunday's game early. Mahomes, who briefly left the game due to an elbow injury in the first half, also shared that he was set to receive additional testing to determine the nature of the ailment following the game.
Now at 6-2 for the year, Kansas City will aim to stick in the win column next week as the Chiefs head to Atlanta to take on the Falcons this upcoming Sunday.
