Patrick Mahomes' four-TD night lifts Chiefs over Lions
The Kansas City Chiefs dominated the Detroit Lions 24-7 for a convincing 30-17 victory to improve to 3-3. It was Kansas City's first win of the season against a team with a winning record.
Patrick Mahomes proved that he is still the best quarterback in the NFL with his performance tonight. He completed 22 of 30 passes for 257 passing yards and three touchdowns. He also had 31 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown.
The Lions made a crucial mistake on the first possession of the game. After driving the ball down Kansas City's throat and reaching the one-yard line, a touchdown pass from running back David Montgomery to quarterback Jared Goff was taken off the board when the referees determined Goff had committed an illegal moving penalty before the ball was snapped on a 4th-and-goal. While arguing with the referees, the Lions were assessed a delay of game penalty, forcing them to settle for a field goal and a 3-0 lead. This possession was 9:39 late.
The Chiefs needed no trickery to respond to the Lions. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes completed a 15-yard pass to tight end Travis Kelce before hitting wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster for a catch and a 30-yard run. Facing a 4th and 3 in the red zone, Xavier Worthy caught a six-yard pass and sent the ball into the end zone for his first receiving touchdown of the season. Following a missed extra point, KC led 6-3.
On their next drive, Lions tight end Sam LaPorta made a 26-yard catch and run to close the quarter and bring Detroit to within 42 yards of the Chiefs. On a 3rd-and-3, Jared Goff hit wide receiver Jameson Williams on a crossing route for a 22-yard touchdown to regain the lead 10-6. It was his first TD catch in four weeks.
With a 4th and 2 in Detroit territory, the Chiefs collected three yards thanks to running back Kareem Hunt. They eventually reached the red zone, where they faced another fourth-down attempt. This time, Kansas City failed to pick up a third down after a pass intended for Xavier Worthy was deflected, leading to a turnover on downs.
Detroit relied heavily on the rushing attack on its next drive. They ran it six straight times for 34 yards to get the ball past midfield. Soon they had a 4th-and-2 at the KC 44-yard line, but a pass to wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown was dropped, allowing the Chiefs to take over on offense.
A 13-yard catch by Hollywood Brown put Kansas City in enemy territory while bringing this game to the two-minute warning. The Lions were flagged for a defensive pass interference penalty on a 3rd-and-10, giving KC a first down in the red zone with 54 seconds left in the half. Travis Kelce then had a 17-yard catch to bring the Chiefs to the one-yard line. One play later, Patrick Mahomes took the ball into the end zone on a quarterback keeper for his fourth rushing touchdown of the season to put Kansas City ahead 13-10 with 37 seconds left in the second quarter.
Detroit's offense took the field with 27 seconds left in the quarter, but they were forced into a three-and-out, so they took a three-point deficit going into the break.
On their first series of the second half, the Chiefs methodically moved the ball down the field, gaining 72 yards in seven plays to reach the Detroit nine-yard line. That allowed Hollywood Brown to score a final touchdown to put KC within 20-10 early in the third quarter. Surprisingly, this is only the second game this season in which Patrick Mahomes has thrown multiple passing touchdowns.
After the two teams traded punts, David Montgomery completed a short 23-yard pass to Detroit's 42. Then, Amon-Ra St. Brown recorded three consecutive catches for 29 yards to bring the ball deep into KC territory. David Montgomery completed a screen pass to the Chiefs' nine to end the third quarter. On the second play of the final frame, Sam LaPorta made an absurd one-handed touchdown catch to cut the lead to 20-17. It was LaPorta's second catch in as many weeks.
Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson hurt his team's chances by drawing a passer penalty on Patrick Mahomes, which allowed the Chiefs to get the ball back near midfield. From there, Xavier Worthy had 20 combined yards on consecutive plays to reach Detroit's 31. Once they got into the red zone, Patrick Mahomes found a wide open Hollywood Brown for a three-yard touchdown to increase their lead to 27-17 with 9:30 left in the fourth quarter. This was Hollywood Brown's first multi-touchdown match since October 11, 2021.
The Lions couldn't answer KC's scoring drive. The Chiefs recorded their first sack of the night on a third down to force a three-and-out and get the ball back at the Detroit 49 with less than 7:30 to play. After allowing no sacks from weeks two through four, the Lions have allowed five sacks in their last two games.
Once again, Patrick Mahomes found Travis Kelce on third down to bring the Chiefs to the Lions' 34. On their next third down, Kareem Hunt crushed Detroit cornerback Rock Ya-Sin for a ten-yard pickup to set up at the Lions 15-yard line. Kansas City faced another third down with 3:14 to play, but this time Patrick Mahomes took a sack, leading the Chiefs to kick a 33-yard field goal for a 30-17 advantage with 2:26 to play.
The Lions offense took the field with 2:20 left and no timeouts. Unfortunately for Detroit, Jared Goff threw four straight incompletions after a nine-yard gain for a turnover on downs. Goff finished the night with 203 passing yards and two touchdowns.
With this loss, the Lions' four-game winning streak came to an end. Based on winning percentage, they fell to second place in the NFC North behind the Green Bay Packers, who picked up a win over Detroit.
*Author's Note: All information and statistics are tracked in real time and are provided by the game's broadcaster, NFL.com and ESPN.com*
2025-10-13 03:25:00
