Patrick Mahomes knows he needs to improve. But there’s no need to worry.
Thanks to some strong efforts from Kansas City’s defense, the two-time defending Super Bowl champions remain unbeaten.
Mahomes bounced back from another interception to throw two touchdown passes, while the Chiefs’ defense stopped Atlanta twice on fourth down in the final minutes, securing a 22-17 win over the Falcons on Sunday night.
“It helps when you have a defense that’s been in those moments before and is able to make those big plays,” Mahomes said. “It’s a team game and we’re winning games and I feel like we’re gonna start getting better and better each and every week.”
The Chiefs (3-0) have not been perfect, that’s for sure — Mahomes takes responsibility for much of that — but their record remains intact by a total of just 13 points.
After a surprising win against Philadelphia, the Falcons (1-2) had several chances to score the go-ahead touchdown in the last minutes.
Kirk Cousins threw two incomplete passes in the end zone from the Chiefs’ 6-yard line after the Falcons chose not to attempt a field goal with just over four minutes left.
Atlanta got the ball back, moved down the field with some help from penalties, and faced third-and-1 at the Kansas City 13. Tyler Allgeier was stopped for no gain, and Bijan Robinson was tackled for a 3-yard loss by Nick Bolton on fourth down with less than a minute left.
Bolton mentioned that he recognized the Falcons’ play before they snapped the ball.
“Trust my keys, trust my eyes, trust the play call we had,” he said. “I already knew where I was going.”
Mahomes passed for 217 yards, including touchdown throws to Rashee Rice and JuJu Smith-Schuster, while Harrison Butker kicked three field goals for the Chiefs.
Cousins completed 20 of 29 passes for 230 yards, with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Drake London and a 50-yard completion to Kyle Pitts that set up Robinson’s 1-yard scoring run.
“I feel like we’ve left a lot of opportunities out there on the field,” Cousins said. “I look forward to getting better.”
Building on their surprising win at Philadelphia, the Falcons took the opening kickoff and quickly drove 70 yards for a touchdown.
Cousins completed all five of his passes for 66 yards, including a 14-yard touchdown pass to Drake London, who also caught the winning score against the Eagles. London ended up wide open in the end zone due to a mistake in the Chiefs’ coverage.
Mahomes responded after throwing his fourth interception of the season, leading Kansas City on a 13-play, 79-yard drive that concluded with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Rice.
The Falcons regained the lead with Robinson’s 1-yard touchdown run, set up by Cousins’ 50-yard pass to Kyle Pitts.
However, Atlanta’s offensive line faced challenges when right tackle Kaleb McGary and center Drew Dalman both left the game with injuries.
With two backups in, the offensive line struggled to protect Cousins, who was sacked twice and hit 10 more times while throwing, spending much of the night getting up off the field at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
