Chiefs vs 49ers Breakdown
A deeper dive into the Kansas City Chiefs’ win over the San Francisco 49ers.
Justin Miles @justm1les
The Kansas City Chiefs took down the San Francisco 49ers 44-23 in Week 7’s Game of the Week. The Chiefs advance to 5-2 while the 49ers fall to 3-4. This one started out close. However, Mahomes and the Chiefs dominated the second half. It’s that time of week again, let’s break it down.
Patrick Mahomes was absoutely electrifying. He completed 25 of 34 passes for 423 yards and 3 touchdowns. He continues to fight his case for MVP and led the Chiefs offense to a spectacular performance.
The Chiefs tallied 530 yards of total offense against the #1 defense in the NFL. Also against that defense, the Chiefs averaged 9.1 yards a play. They also held this defense to only one sack throughout the entire game. The offense was flying on all cylinders and showed exactly what they’re capable of.
Rookie Isiah Pacheco made his first career start in this one and ended with 8 carries for 43 yards. He blocked well too and had a good showing for the night. As the number 1 back in Kansas City, his production will continue to rise and expectations should be higher than ever. Despite the demotion, Clyde Edwards-Helaire saw 6 touches for 32 yards and a touchdown. The Chiefs managed to get receiver Mecole Hardman into the ground game, giving him 2 carries which went for 28 yards and a touchdown. The running back room did a great job despite seeing such a small load in carries.
JuJu Smith-Schuster continued his hot streak and was lights out. He caught 7 passes for 124 yards and a touchdown. He has recently been electric and shows no signs of slowing down. Despite recent spectating of Chiefs and OBJ rumors, Smith-Schuster has been establishing himself as a solid WR1.
Another new face in town, Marquez Valdes-Scantling had his best game with the organization in this one as well. He took 3 catches for 111 yards. We have known all along that MVS is a solid deep threat and this way finally seen this week. While he will likely be deep ball dependent, it is definitely possible future plays will be schemed around him. His deep threat ability gains the attention of defenses, forcing them to play somewhat conservative.
Per usual, Travis Kelce had a great game. On National Tight Ends Day, the best in the business caught 6 passes for 98 yards. He seems to always be open no matter what the defense is doing.
On top of his impressive rushing performance, Mecole Hardman was also effective through the air. He caught 4 passes for 32 yards and a touchdown. Justin Watson also caught a touchdown in this one.
The offensive line played better than last week but still could show improvement moving forward. There was reoccurring pressure on Mahomes all night. However, the 49ers pass rush was only able to finish the job once, racking up only a single sack. We can give them the benefit of the doubt here, as they did play the best defense in the NFL.
The Kansas City defense also stepped up in a huge way. Juan Thornhill shined, leading the team with 11 total tackles while also having an interception. He is a young player with a very high ceiling as the season progresses. Willie Gay made his first appearance after his suspension and immediately made an impact, racking up 8 total tackles and half a sack.
Overall, the entire pass rush was unstoppable, even while facing one of the best offensive lines with the best offensive lineman in Trent Williams. Chris Jones had 2 sacks and a forced fumble and Frank Clark had 1.5 sacks, including a safety sack. L’Jarius Sneed and Khalen Saunders also earned half a sack. Rookie Joshua Williams has stepped up in a big way for the Chiefs. He had a spectacular interception in the end zone, along with several other great plays.
Overall, the defense played very well. There were a few missed opportunities and it was sloppy at times. However, it was very clear that this defense is for real.
Special teams was hit and miss. Isiah Pacheco did an overall good job returning kicks in this one. Skyy Moore muffed another punt, giving the 49ers great field position and furthering their drive. Harrison Butker missed a field goal but went 6/6 on extra points. The kick off team did a great job pinning the 49ers return men deep. While there were many bright spots, special teams has got to fully get things together moving forward.
Overall, the Chiefs played exceptional football on all sides of the ball. If they play like this every week, they will be unstoppable. This one gave us a great glimpse of how good the Chiefs really can be. The Chiefs move on to their bye week next, where they will look to recover and possibly make some roster moves. Keep an eye out for some potential signings and trades. As always, Go Chiefs!
Stats via: ESPN
