Four areas that stood out in Chiefs' win over Ravens
Xavier Worthy returns and energizes offense
The Chiefs turned in an efficient outing on both sides of the ball in Sunday’s impressive 37-20 win over the Baltimore Ravens.
Kansas City improves to 2-2 with the win, and the offense woke up from the slumber of the previous three games.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes paced the offense to 384 total yards, as he completed 25-of-37 passes for 270 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions for a 124.8 passer rating.
Kansas City scored on seven of its first eight possessions and dominated time of possession, holding a 34:45-25:15 edge.
The Chiefs’ offense was so dominant that Matt Araiza had just one punt in the matchup, and it came late in the game after Mahomes gave way to backup quarterback Gardner Minshew.
Meanwhile, the Chiefs’ defense held the potent Ravens offense to 20 points, which was 17 points below their season average. And the total points would’ve been lower if not for a late 71-yard touchdown run by Ravens running back Justice Hill with less than two minutes left in the game.
The Chiefs also notched two turnovers in the game, as linebacker Leo Chenal recorded an acrobatic one-handed interception, the first of his career, off Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson. Linebacker Drue Tranquill recovered a Jackson fumble.
“I was proud of our big guys on both sides of the ball,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “I thought they played well. They knew coming into this game here that it’s always going to be physical.
“Doesn’t matter who is playing on either side, but it’s going to be a physical game, and I thought our guys stepped up and came through in that area.”
Here are four areas that stood out from Sunday’s victory:
WELCOME BACK
Wide receiver Xavier Worthy returned to action after missing the past two games.
One could argue that Worthy has missed three games because he only played three plays in the season opener before suffering a shoulder injury.
Either way, the Chiefs’ offense looked much different with the speedy Worthy in the lineup.
Worthy was involved in all three of the offense’s explosive plays, defined as 20 yards or more.
The second-year wide receiver had catches of 37 yards and 28 yards, respectively, and contributed to the ground game with a 35-yard run.
“He’s just so explosive,” Mahomes said of Worthy. “You just see it when you get the football in his hands, the defenses have to adjust. And when they adjust, he gets so much attention, other guys can make plays happen.
“Just having him out there, not only for his physical ability but just the morale of the room, I thought it was huge.”
Worthy finished the game with team-high numbers in catches (5), yards (83) and targets (8). He added two rushes for 38 yards, giving him 121 total yards in the game.
Now, imagine how the offense will be when Rashee Rice returns from serving a six-game suspension to complete the wide receiver corps.
THE LITTLE THINGS
Linebacker Nick Bolton made two plays that won’t show up in the box score, but each play made a big impact in the game.
Bolton made his presence felt in the Ravens backfield with pressure on the elusive Jackson.
The star linebacker was in Jackson’s face to force the signal-caller to throw the interception to Chenal. Bolton also was alongside defensive end George Karlaftis on a fourth-down pass rush in the second quarter to stop a Baltimore drive and force a turnover on downs.
Bolton finished the game with six total tackles and a quarterback hit.
BROKEN RECORD TIME
While the Chiefs won in impressive fashion, they continue to lack a consistent running game.
On paper, the Chiefs finished the game with 118 yards rushing on 32 attempts.
Take away Worthy’s 38 yards, though, and the Chiefs would’ve had 80 yards rushing on 30 attempts (2.6 yards per carry).
The Ravens entered the game ranked 30th against the run, allowing a healthy 149 yards per contest.
This was a matchup that heavily favored the Chiefs’ running game, but they didn’t take advantage of it.
Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt combined for 69 yards rushing on 20 carries, a collective 3.4 yards per attempt.
NIT PICKING
Yes, the Chiefs blew out the Ravens.
But third-down efficiency, or lack thereof, reared its head again.
The Chiefs finished the game converting 5-of-15 attempts on third down (33%) against the Ravens.
The inability to convert third downs didn’t hurt the team, however, as the Chiefs were a perfect 4-for-4 on fourth-down opportunities.
