Sunday Night Football brings a Chiefs-Colts matchup to Arrowhead Stadium in Week 2, and both teams arrive with very different opening-week storylines.
Kansas City opened the season with a 31-7 win over the Broncos on Monday night, a game that suggested last year’s disappointment may already be in the rearview mirror. Patrick Mahomes looked like himself again, finishing with three total touchdowns, while Steve Spagnuolo’s defense kept Denver quarterback Bo Nix under pressure all night with four sacks and two takeaways.
Indianapolis, by contrast, had a rough start in a 41-23 loss to the Ravens. Baltimore piled up 506 total yards, the Colts turned the ball over twice, and they converted only three of their 10 third-down chances. Jonathan Taylor was one of the few bright spots, though, rushing for 98 yards on 19 carries and scoring two touchdowns despite a fumble.
One of the biggest stories out of Kansas City’s Week 1 win was Kenneth Walker III. The Chiefs’ offseason addition delivered a huge debut, piling up 173 yards on 23 carries and scoring two total touchdowns, including a 60-yard run that put the game out of reach in the second half.
“I told you all, literally, like first press conference. Y’all were asking, ‘What’s the difference with our offense?’
And I said, K9,” Mahomes said of Walker’s impact after last weekend’s win. “It’s the way he’s able to run the ball, catch the ball.
… It’s just a special ability to run the ball tough between the tackles and then when he does bounce it, he has the speed to go all the way.”
That sets up a favorable spot for Walker again on Sunday night. Indianapolis just gave up 202 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns to Baltimore, and the prediction here is that Walker clears his Week 1 total and goes for at least 200 yards.
The Colts also have a potential way to attack Kansas City through the middle of the field. Tight end Tyler Warren caught three passes for 13 yards against Baltimore but still scored in the fourth quarter, giving him five career touchdown catches after four as a rookie.
The Chiefs’ only touchdown allowed in Week 1 came to Broncos tight end Evan Engram, who caught four passes for 43 yards. That leaves a clear opening for Indianapolis to try to lean on Warren, and the prediction is that he finishes with at least five catches and another touchdown.
These teams last met in November, before both clubs lost their starting quarterbacks for the rest of the 2025 season. Kansas City came away with a 23-20 overtime win after erasing an 11-point deficit.
This meeting is expected to look much different. The Chiefs appeared more complete in Week 1, while the Colts looked out of sync in their home loss to Baltimore. The prediction is a lopsided finish: Chiefs 33, Colts 17, with Kansas City moving to 2-0 for the third time since 2022.
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Daniel Jones is heading into another familiar matchup with Kansas City, and the Chiefs are clearly treating it as more than a routine game plan. Jones has already faced them twice and lost both times, but this one comes with a wrinkle: Kansas City defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is zeroing in on what Jones can do as a runner, even after a recent game against Baltimore in which he did not show much mobility.
Spagnuolo also pointed to the challenge of dealing with Jones and Jonathan Taylor on the field together, a pairing that gives Indianapolis a different kind of stress-test than the Chiefs have seen before. For the Colts, that kind of attention is a sign their offense still has enough moving parts to make Kansas City prepare for multiple threats, even if one of them has not been at full speed lately. [Read more 🡒]
DeForest Buckner's Status Suddenly Looms Large For Colts Defense
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Colts Get The Offensive Setup They Needed For Chiefs Test
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Alec Pierce, Keenan Allen and Jonathan Taylor are all cleared to play, and all offensive starters are set to go. For a team trying to hold up against Kansas City, having that kind of continuity matters, especially when the margin for error is so small in a game that can swing on one drive, one protection call or one explosive play. [Read more 🡒]