The Indianapolis Colts have a way with the Kansas City Chiefs. History is littered with unfortunate meetings in which the Colts get the best of the Chiefs, including some of the more painful losses in team history. So even though the Colts aren't exactly one of the NFL's most feared franchises at this point, those who've watched this series history knew that Sunday Night Football was going to be weird.
While the game was much closer than it should have been, the Chiefs escaped a short week with a second primetime win—this one in overtime. That's a 2-0 start for the Chiefs and an early-season shot of confidence with perhaps the league's worst team up next on the schedule (a visit to play the Miami Dolphins). It was a memorable night at Arrowhead. Here are our instant takeaways.
1. Patrick Mahomes is a legitimate MVP candidate
Coming into a new season, fans were just hoping to see Mahomes back and healthy under center after suffering torn knee ligaments last December against the Chargers. Not only was he ready for Week 1 against the Denver Broncos, but he was in MVP form against the Colts in his second game back from such a devastating injury. Mahomes finished the night with 382 passing yards and 3 touchdown passes (with zero interceptions).
2. Travis Kelce's still got it
Much more needs to be written about Travis Kelce's banner night (and the overall start to his season), but we have to mention things here. For those who thought that Kelce's impactful days were behind him, that Father Time might claim yet another aging athlete who stuck around a bit too long, Kelce put up a strong showcase in primetime with 9 catches for 101 yards and 1 touchdown. The way that Mahomes and Kelce toyed with the Colts' defense made it feel like 2020 all over again (minus a pandemic). If we're taking anything from this game, it's that a legend is still legendary.
3. Chiefs' special teams rarely look special
It feels like a weekly storyline at this point for the Chiefs, going back to last season (and the season before). From returners not knowing the proper rules on kickoffs to allowing big returns to the opposition to costly penalties that chip away at what little margin a team will ever find in the NFL, Dave Toub's units often make sledding tougher than it has to be. A missed kick by Butker made overtime necessary in the first place. At some point, the errors on special teams will cost the Chiefs a game. It doesn't have to be this way.
4. Tyquan Thornton looks like the weapon Mahomes needs
The Chiefs re-signed Thornton this offseason after hearing the receiver state publicly that he only wanted to sign with a team that would make a bigger part of the offensive puzzle. On a night in which Xavier Worthy's play was frustrating and Rashee Rice couldn't be found for long stretches, Thornton is the one who came up big in the vertical passing attack on more than one occasion. The emergence of Thornton as a reliable downfield target in a middling WR room could be an important early-season development.
5. The defense is a serious work in progress
Daniel Jones is coming off a torn Achilles himself. Alec Pierce was injured in the first quarter. That the Colts could move the football as well as they did speaks to some lackluster coverage (L'Jarius Sneed), some wrong angles (Jaden Hicks), and some costly penalties (Kristian Fulton, George Karlaftis). The complete lack of pressure one week after showing so much promise was especially concerning. A rebuilt secondary will look mercurial as they come together, but this film will be tough to watch for the entire defense this week.
6. The Chiefs can't stop the one player they have to stop
Speaking of defensive frustrations... Jonathan Taylor was already the Colts' best player by a country mile, but when Alec Pierce went down, the Chiefs should have had the star running back in their crosshairs on every play. Somehow, Taylor continued to not only churn out the necessary yardage in the ground game, but he was open again and again for quick throws as an outlet. Taylor punishes most teams, but the Chiefs had no real reason to focus much attention anywhere else.
7. It's gonna be a tough recovery for all
Don't forget that the Chiefs played on Monday night in Week 1. That means that K.C. was already working on a shorter-than-normal week of rest (or lack of it). Now you add another 10 game minutes of overtime and it's going to be hard to rebound from these first two weeks, at least physically. Speaking of overtime, the Chiefs' training staff will be working that much for sure in the days to come.
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