Three overlooked heroes from the Chiefs' gritty win over the Chargers in Week 4

Four games into the season and the Kansas City Chiefs are 4-0. Even though it may not be pretty, the undefeated season has been helped by every single player in red and yellow but it's not very often that they receive game balls for their performances.

But, much like last week, there are some game balls to be handed out to players who may not have caught everybody's eyes. They made game-changing stops, huge pressures, and big comebacks, but with big plays like the touchdown to Xavier Worthy, it's easy to lose them in the fog.

Let's rundown some players who deserve game balls from the Chiefs win over the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 4.

Game Ball #1: Jaylen Watson

Watson, a third-year cornerback, has had some huge plays in his career, including a 99-yard pick-six against the Chargers as a rookie in 2022, but on Sunday, the big plays weren't as visible on the stat sheet.

Watson was the highest-graded Chief, per Pro Football Focus, at the end of the day and it was obvious why. If you watched the Chargers and Justin Herbert, you saw Watson dominating Los Angeles in coverage.

Along with a dropped interception that would have been yet another pick-six, Watson finished with three tackles, two pass deflections, and a gritty drive-stopping play on Ladd McConkey midway through the fourth to give Kansas City the ball back for a touchdown drive.

Over the course of the first three weeks, the Chiefs' pass defense wasn't ranked very high, but Watson proved he's not the problem on Sunday. Together with Trent McDuffie, Watson also showed the Chiefs could still form one of the best secondaries in the AFC.

Game Ball #2: Kareem Hunt

I'll be the first to admit that the addition of Kareem Hunt seemed necessary but not helpful. He'd looked like he had lost a step. He was also a free agent for a reason, so it looked like he'd have to wait for Carson Steele and Samaje Perine to head to the sidelines in order to see some reps. That was proven wrong almost immediately on Sunday in his debut for the Chiefs.

Hunt proved his ability to be the Chiefs RB1 with 69 yards on 14 carries and 2 catches for 16 more yards. Just one week after being brought into the facility, he may have shown that he's the guy at the top of the depth chart over Steele, who fumbled on the first drive, and Perine who punched it in for the game-winning touchdown after Hunt earned the lion's share of yards on the drive.

It's a small sample size but Hunt did show he's got some of the same burst he had when he dominated in Kansas City his rookie year. That will be great for Steele's progression and Perine's wear-and-tear, allowing both guys to catch their breath and prepare for a late-season push.

Hunt ended the day with 4.9 yards per carry, 85 total yards—and a feeling like he's back where he belongs. He couldn't have asked for anything more for his first game back with the Chiefs.

Game Ball #3: Kansas City's TE room

Up to this point in the season, it was obvious that Travis Kelce wasn't being used as often or as well as in previous years, but he shut everybody up in Los Angeles with a team-high 7 receptions and 89 yards.

Early in the game he also broke the Kansas City Chiefs' receiving record with his 917th catch. And after a week of hearing his name scorched by every pundit in sports media, he did what he has always done in divisional matchups: deliver when needed.

But Kelce wasn't the only Chiefs tight end that delivered when necessary. Noah Gray, fresh off a new contract earlier this season, ended the game with four catches for 40 yards. Twenty-nine of those yards came on a gut punch of a play with just over eight minutes left. That's when Mahomes opened up the drive with a small scramble through the pocket before throwing a strike to the middle of the field to Gray.

Gray always seems to be reliable late in games when every play matters, and he proved it again today with a few small pickups leading up to that big gain to set the Chiefs up at the Chargers' 31-yard line in a tie game.

Both Gray and Kelce had some excellent blocking throughout the game too, putting everything they had on the field for yet another big AFC West divisional game.

Honorable Mentions:

- Felix Anudike-Uzomah: The second-year pass rusher got the start due to Mike Danna being inactive, and he made the most of it with two tackles, two QB hits, and a huge pressure late in the game to force Justin Herbert to turn the ball over on downs when the Chargers likely should have kicked it.

- Chris Jones: He proved once again why he's the highest-paid DT in the league, getting pressure on Herbert all game long and leaving with two official sacks.