The Chiefs didn’t just show up in Denver and win. They looked like a team that spent the offseason changing its identity.
Kansas City’s 2025 debut had the familiar pieces in place - Patrick Mahomes, a solid defense, and all the usual noise that comes with the reigning standard in the AFC West - but the biggest shift came on the ground. After Denver ended the Chiefs’ run of nine straight division titles last season, Kansas City answered by leaning into a different kind of offense and pounding the Broncos in full view of everybody.
The makeover started with personnel. The Chiefs brought back former offensive coordinator and running backs coach Eric Bieniemy, signed Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III, drafted Nebraska running back Emmett Johnson and made a clear push to become a stronger rushing team. On Monday night, that plan looked real.
Walker made his Chiefs debut and ripped off 173 yards and a touchdown on 7.5 yards per carry. That was the most yards by a Chiefs running back in the Mahomes era. As a team, Kansas City rolled up 220 rushing yards against a Broncos defense that ranked among the NFL’s top two against the run last season.
That kind of production changes the conversation fast. For most of the Mahomes era, Kansas City has been defined by quarterback brilliance and a defense that could keep games under control.
The run game was useful, but never the centerpiece. During the Chiefs’ seven straight conference championship appearances from 2018-24, they never finished higher than 16th in rushing yards, and they were 25th last year.
This time, the ground game looked like the engine. Mahomes was still working his way back from a significant knee injury, and the defense still looked dependable, but the new wrinkle is what jumps off the page: if Kansas City has a legitimately dangerous rushing attack now, the rest of the league has another problem to solve.
That’s why the Chiefs climbed from No. 15 in FTW’s preseason power rankings to No. 3 in the Week 2 update. Christian D’Andrea summed it up this way:
"Signing Kenneth Walker III carried some risk. The reigning Super Bowl MVP was largely a platoon back in Seattle. Could he handle a bellcow role behind Patrick Mahomes?
Yes. The answer is yes. From there, Steve Spagnuolo embarrassed Bo Nix and shoved the defending AFC West champs into a locker, making an early statement that, yes, 2025 was very much an outlier."
Elsewhere, CBS has released its NFL announcing schedule for the next few weeks while Tony Romo’s status remains in limbo. James Franklin had an extremely cringeworthy exchange with a reporter at a recent press conference.
Arch Manning is being ripped for his reaction to an AI video of Steve Sarkisian slapping Holly Rowe. There are also fantasy football waiver wire candidates to add or drop as the season moves into Week 2, plus Chris Olave’s explanation for wearing a Guardian Cap in games.
Charles Curtis also re-heated grades for the Clippers and Raptors after the Kawhi Leonard trade became official.
In Other News...
Travis Kelce Shared A Tom Cruise Detail Chiefs Fans Will Love
Fresh off the Chiefs win over the Broncos, Jason and Travis Kelce stayed in Kansas City to record a new episode of their New Heights podcast, and the setting only added to the buzz around Travis latest football weekend. Tom Cruise was in Travis Kelces suite during the game, a sighting that already had fans talking, and Cruise is lined up to appear on a special episode of the podcast.
Travis also gave listeners a lighter family moment, sharing how his nieces first addressed Taylor Swift by her full name before being coached to call her Aunt Tay Tay. Between the celebrity guest tease and the personal anecdote, it was one of those episodes that reminded Chiefs fans how much attention now follows nearly every part of Kelces world, on and off the field. [Read more 🡒]
Chiefs Are Suddenly Tied To A Steelers Trade Rumor Worth Watching
A contract extension has not come together yet for Joey Porter Jr., and his Week 1 absence because of a back injury only added another layer of uncertainty around the Steelers cornerback. Now his situation is drawing attention beyond Pittsburgh, with the Chiefs and Lions reportedly monitoring developments as the season gets underway.
For Kansas City, any whisper involving a young, high-upside defensive back is worth at least a look, especially this early in the year when teams are still taking stock of their depth and long-term needs. The reports remain speculative and nothing has been confirmed by either team, but Porters status is suddenly one of those league storylines that could linger if the contract talks stay stalled. [Read more 🡒]
Travis Kelce Is Suddenly Tied To A Strange Off-Field Legal Case
A federal fraud case in Missouri has ended with a steep prison sentence for Sid Jawahar, who was convicted of running a multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme. Among the victims named in the case was Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, a surprising footnote in a story that had nothing to do with football but still landed on the radar of Kansas City fans.
Jawahar pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud charges and was sentenced to 11 years in prison, with deportation expected after he serves that term. The court filing did not spell out Kelces specific involvement, leaving the Chiefs star tied to the case only as one of the people harmed by the scheme and not as a figure at its center. [Read more 🡒]