The Chiefs showed the NFL what they’re capable of

The Chiefs went into New England and showed us they can beat Tom Brady and Bill Belichick in their own house. 

Whatever you might think of Alex Smith and the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback controversy, Smith played his best football as a Chief on Thursday night. Smith showed off what he can do against the number one team, and he did so in their house.

After being doubted by all media outlets and most of the fans as well, the Chiefs showed us what they can do. I always say that I love when the Chiefs are the underdog because they come out with their backs to the wall and shove back.

Even with their ridiculous 15 penalties for 139 yards, they were able to run away with the game in the fourth quarter. With all the mistakes we saw, the Chiefs still played an amazing game against a very tough opponent in their own house.

While many media outlets are making up excuses for the Patriots, it’s something that the Chiefs are used to. NFL analysts talked about Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman for what seemed like an hour before the game and during the game, but never once mentioned Chiefs running back Spencer Ware, who will also miss the entire season due to injury.

Make any excuse you want, but the Chiefs were clearly the better team in this game. Let’s take a look at what we saw from your Chiefs.

Alex Smith

Smith threw the ball for 28 of 35 passes, 368 yards, and 4 touchdowns against the Patriots. While the Patriots tried to take away the Chiefs’ top weapons, Smith not only found ways to get them the ball but also found ways to move the ball without his top weapons.

Smith had a bit of a rocky start after that first drive, but the rest of the game he played lights out. He found ways to get the ball to his biggest playmakers while they dealt with tight and, at times, double coverage was a sight to see. We have seen these players be taken out of games due to Smith not willing to throw into those tight windows before.

That wasn’t true on Thursday night, however. Smith was making great throws into tight coverage. To make it even better, Smith had multiple good deep throws to guys like Tyreek Hill, who didn’t have to come back for it, and Kareem Hunt who was hit perfectly between defenders and in stride.

Smith showed all of his doubters that he is capable of winning a game in New England and succeed even when his top weapons are getting extra attention against a tough defense. This was something I had not seen from Smith prior to this game. Usually when you take his top weapons away, especially Kelce, Smith really struggles.

The biggest surprise for me was the red zone offense. While many of the Chiefs touchdowns came from deep passes, Smith looked much better in the red zone in this game. Last year was miserable in the red zone for the Chiefs.

I am not jumping on the Smith train to the Super Bowl right now, but this was a good prove it game for Smith. Now the question is, “Can he play like this consistently and into the playoffs?”

Smith has never had a season with more than one 300-plus yard game in his career. Can this be the year he goes over that mark? Can he consistently play at this level?

Tyreek Hill

Tyreek Hill had 7 catches on 8 targets for 133 yards and a touchdown. Travis Kelce had 5 catches on 7 targets for 40 yards.

The Patriots spent most of the night boxing Kelce and keeping him covered. They also sent extra safety help toward Hill all night and it still wasn’t enough to contain him. Hill made some key plays including his 75-yard touchdown catch.

He also came open across the middle for some key first down catches. Against one of the best secondaries in the league, Tyreek Hill could not be stopped.

Kareem Hunt

The Chiefs went into this game with only two running backs in Kareem Hunt and Charcandrick West. C.J. Spiller getting cut before the game made the pressure even higher for rookie running back Hunt. Spencer Ware’s injury and Spiller’s cut made this a huge game for Hunt.

The Chiefs put a lot on the rookie’s shoulders and he showed that he could handle it as he was the only running back for almost the entire game. Tyreek Hill and De’Anthony Thomas had a couple carries, but Charcandrick West had only one carry which was his touchdown late in the fourth.

I figured that the Chiefs would split the carries pretty evenly, but Reid had confidence in his rookie running back and decided to give him a full load. Boy did it pay off.

Kareem Hunt had a really rough start to the night fumbling his first career carry in the NFL. However, that did not slow him down. Hunt got back up and finished the game breaking a rookie record for most yards from scrimmage in a players first career game. Hunt finished the night with 246 total yards and 3 touchdowns.

Hunt showed that even in the NFL he is hard to bring down. Bouncing off tackles and fighting for extra yards after the first contact was the story of his night. He also showed off his ability in the passing game where two of those touchdowns came.

Both the passing and running attack, Hunt had the longest play out of any player for the Chiefs. His 58-yard long run and his 78-yard touchdown catch were both on top. I think it’s easy to say that Hunt had a great night to start off his career with all the pressure in the world on his shoulders.