The Kansas City Chiefs hopped on Kenneth Walker's back as the running back was unstoppable against Denver.
The Kansas City Chiefs spent training camp talking about their newfound commitment to the running game, and they backed it up by turning Kenneth Walker III loose for 173 yards to go with a pair of touchdowns in their 31-10 win over the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead.
The game opened explosively, as the Chiefs intercepted a Bo Nix underthrow on the first Denver drive, with cornerback and No. 1 pick Mansoor Delane making the grab.
That led to a statement drive by the Chiefs that featured Walker, Walker and more Walker. He rushed seven times on the drive for 32 yards with only one short throw to Xavier Worthy, and Mahomes wound up running it in from 15 yards out on a surprising scramble.
That made it 7-0, but the Broncos wasted no time coming back as they unleashed their passing game, with receiver Pat Bryant following up on his great camp by catching three passes for 32 yards. Nix then threw a 19-yard touchdown strike to tight end Evan Engram in the front left corner of the end zone to tie the game at 7-7.
Things settled down quickly after that, and the second quarter was mostly a defensive battle. But the Chiefs put together a late drive that once again featured Walker, with Mahomes then hitting a short pass to Rashee Rice, who broke a poor tackle from Riley Moss to score a touchdown from 13 yards out and make it 14-7 at the half.
The Chiefs widened their lead to start the third quarter as they kept feeding Walker, who bounced a fourth-and-1 run outside on the first series of the second half to run 60 yards for a touchdown and bump the lead to 21-7.
But Mahomes helped the Broncos briefly get back in it with an awful interception by safety Brandon Jones on a deep throw to Worthy, and Jones returned the pick just inside the KC ten-yard line. But the Broncos couldn’t capitalize, and the result was a short field goal from Wil Lutz to make it 21-10.
The Chiefs made a big play to get the field goal back, as Mahomes hit tight end Travis Kelce on what turned into a 59-yard gain due to more poor Denver tackling. But the Chiefs couldn’t finish their drive, and a short field goal from Harrison Butker made it 24-10.
Kansas City blew the game open after that as Chris Jones recovered a horrible Nix fumble, and the 34-yard touchdown drive featured a 26-yard catch-and-run to running back Emmett Johnson, who showed some nifty moves as the Broncos once again failed to tackle. Walker finished off the drive with a two-yard shovel pass from Mahomes to make it 31-10.
The rest was mostly window dressing that combined more offensive futility from Denver with the Chiefs grounding and pounding, this time with Johnson as the lead back. Walker finished with 173 yards rushing on 23 carries, with Mahomes going 15-for-27 for 184 yards and two touchdowns to go with an interception.
Bo Nix, meanwhile, wound up 17-for-28 for 131 yards with a pick and a touchdown, and he was sacked four times for a total of 16 yards. The win left future Chiefs opponents with plenty to think about as they looked back and ready to contend with their new winning formula.
