The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Carolina Panthers, 30-27, in another nailbiter on Sunday that came down to the wire.
Here are some quick notes from the victory.
1. The Chiefs secured their 10th consecutive season with double-digit wins.
Kansas City locked up double-digit victories on the season for the 10th consecutive campaign on Sunday, extending what was already the third-longest streak for any team in the Super Bowl Era.
Only the 2003-19 New England Patriots (17 straight) and the 1983-98 San Francisco 49ers (16 straight) own longer streaks in that time.
Additionally, only Bill Belichick – who led the Patriots for all 17 of their 10-win seasons from 2003-19 – owns a longer streak of consecutive 10-win campaigns by a head coach than Andy Reid.
Reid now has 19 total 10-win seasons as a head coach during his brilliant career, which marks the third-most for any head coach in league history. Only Belichick (20) and Don Shula (20) recorded more.
2. Rookie kicker Spencer Shrader came through in the clutch when it mattered most.
Shrader, who only signed with Kansas City prior to last week's game against Buffalo, came through for the first game-winning, walk-off field goal of his young career on Sunday with a 31-yard kick as time expired.
Shrader remains perfect on field goals (2-for-2) and extra-points (6-for-6) since joining the Chiefs.
3. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes' 33-yard run helped set up Shrader's game-winner.
Mahomes broke loose for a 33-yard scramble on the Chiefs' final possession that ultimately set up Shrader's game-winning kick. It matched the longest run of Mahomes' career in the regular season, tying the mark he set against the San Francisco 49ers earlier this season.
When including the playoffs, only Mahomes' 34-yard run against the Buffalo Bills during last year's postseason was longer than Sunday's scramble.
4. Mahomes also made some franchise history on Sunday with three touchdown passes.
Mahomes matched the legendary Len Dawson for the most touchdown passes in franchise history on Sunday with 237. Remarkably, he did so in just 107 career games. It was the 41st three-touchdown performance of Mahomes' career, which leads the NFL by 12 games since 2018.
At only 29 years old, Mahomes already ranks 32nd in NFL history in terms of career touchdown passes. His 237 passing touchdowns are the most through 107 career games in NFL history, and 13 ahead of second place.
5. Tight end Travis Kelce now ranks third all-time in terms of receiving yards by a tight end.
Kelce caught six passes for 62 yards on Sunday, moving past Antonio Gates (11,841) for sole possession of the third-most receiving yards by a tight end in NFL history (11,897).
Only Tony Gonzalez (15,127) and Jason Witten (13,046) recorded more receiving yards at the tight end position in NFL history that Kelce.
6. Tight end Noah Gray caught multiple touchdown passes for the second game in a row.
Gray, who entered last week's game with four career touchdown receptions, now has four scoring grabs over his last eight quarters. He caught two touchdowns last week, marking the first multi-touchdown game of his career, and followed up that performance by doing the same on Sunday.
Additionally, both of Gray's scores against Carolina took place on third down.
7. Wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins hauled in his third touchdown as a member of the Chiefs.
Hopkins found the end zone for the third time as a member of the Chiefs on Sunday with a 3-yard touchdown catch in the closing minutes of the third quarter. The score marked his first since tallying two touchdowns against Tampa Bay back in Week 9.
The veteran receiver also corralled a critical reception on third down late in the game that kept Kansas City's final possession (which ended in Shrader's walk-off field goal) alive.
8. The Chiefs' defense held another formidable tailback under 60 rushing yards.
Kansas City held Panthers' running back Chuba Hubbard, who entered the game with the fourth-most rushing yards in the NFL, to just 58 yards on Sunday, marking only his fourth game of the season with less than 60 yards on the ground (in 11 games played).
The Chiefs have now held all opposing running backs to just 3.1 yards-per-carry on the season, and no opposing running back has yet to break 60 rushing yards vs. Kansas City.
It was at times a frustrating day for the Chiefs' defense, which yielded several big plays and surrendered the lead late in the fourth quarter, but Kansas City's run defense – coupled with four red zone drives by Carolina in which the Chiefs held the Panthers without a touchdown – marked the difference in the game.
9. Nine different players caught a pass for the Chiefs on Sunday.
Patrick Mahomes spread the ball around to nine different pass-catchers on Sunday, matching the second-highest total for Kansas City in a game this year. Only last week, when 11 players caught a pass against the Bills, featured more players with at least one reception.
Additionally, seven of those nine pass-catchers recorded double-digit receiving yards on Sunday, matching a season-high.
10. The Chiefs moved to 26-6 vs. NFC opponents since 2018.
Kansas City has 26 regular season victories against NFC opponents since 2018, which mark the most of any AFC team and – incredibly – more than the New York Giants (25) and Panthers (23) have against their own conference in that time.
Kansas City will now quickly turn the page to a matchup with the Las Vegas Raiders at GEHA Field on Friday afternoon. The game will air locally on KSHB 41, and nationally on Prime Video. In order to watch on Prime Video, only a free Amazon account is required. No purchase is necessary.
