Patrick Mahomes found a familiar South Florida backdrop on Sunday, and then he and the Chiefs did just enough to leave with another win.
Back in the same hotel room he used during his first Super Bowl trip, Mahomes took care of business on the field as Kansas City beat the Miami Dolphins 24-10 to move to 3-0. The Chiefs didn’t look like the explosive team that had averaged more than 450 yards and 32 points entering the day, but they still controlled the important moments.
“You feel that on the field and seeing the stadium where you won your first Super Bowl,” Mahomes said. “It was cool to be back here.”
Kansas City got touchdowns from Kenneth Walker III on both the ground and through the air, while Mahomes finished with 246 passing yards, two touchdowns and an interception. He went 20 of 24 and connected with Walker on a 5-yard score before later hitting Travis Kelce from 11 yards out to seal it.
“Obviously we didn’t play to our standard that we would hold for ourselves,” Mahomes said. “But I thought we found a way to come together at the end of the game.”
The finish came after Kansas City stopped Miami on fourth down at the Dolphins’ 48 and then watched the Chiefs’ defense snag an interception on the next possession. Mahomes pushed the ball back into scoring range, though Harrison Butker missed a 50-yard field goal attempt.
Rashee Rice led Kansas City with seven catches for 88 yards, and his biggest work came on the Chiefs’ final scoring march with grabs of 15 and 34 yards. Kelce, meanwhile, opened the game with a 48-yard catch-and-run but then disappeared from the passing game until the fourth quarter, when he finally got his touchdown.
Walker finished with 18 carries for 70 yards, his first time under 100 rushing yards this season.
The Dolphins had to navigate much of the afternoon without one of their most dangerous weapons. De'Von Achane left on the opening drive with a knee injury after an 11-yard run, and coach Jeff Hafley said the team was still trying to sort out the full extent of the damage, though it did not “sound optimistic.”
Miami, now 0-3, also had to turn to third-stringer Ollie Gordon after Achane’s exit. Jaylen Wright was inactive because of a stinger.
Gordon carried 17 times for 41 yards and scored on a 3-yard run, while Malik Willis handled the rest of the quarterbacking duties and finished 20 of 36 for 210 yards with an interception and a lost fumble. He also ran for 56 yards.
The Dolphins did make a push in the third quarter, trimming the margin to 14-10 on a nine-play drive that featured Greg Dulcich’s 42-yard catch and ended with Riley Patterson’s 37-yard field goal. For a stretch, Miami’s young defense had a real say in the game. After Kansas City scored touchdowns on its first two possessions, the Dolphins forced a turnover on downs on the Chiefs’ third drive and later got a diving interception from rookie linebacker Jacob Rodriguez before halftime.
“It’s never as good as it was, never as bad as it was until you watch the tape, but I’m pleased with that,” Rodriguez said. “I’m pleased with the intensity.
I’m pleased with the physicality of this defense and of this team. And I believe in everybody. ...
Now, we have to get better at the football part of it.”
Andy Reid’s team still found the answers when it mattered. Kansas City had the early burst, Miami had a response, and then the Chiefs closed the door late.
“We knew it’d be four quarters of football, and that’s what it took,” Reid said. “We’ve got plenty of things to work on, but it’s great to be 3-0. There were some real good things we could take out of it, and there’s some things we can definitely work on going forward.”
Mahomes summed up the day in simpler terms.
“We’re not going to be mad about winning,” Mahomes said, adding the team’s youth played a factor in some of Sunday’s lulls. “We won the football game. You think about last season - we were losing some of these games.”
Next up, the Chiefs go to Las Vegas next Sunday. The Dolphins head to Minnesota.
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