The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Oakland Raiders, 40-9, at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday afternoon behind dominant performances in all three phases throughout the contest.
The victory – which marked the Chiefs' 25th in their last 28 divisional contests – maintained Kansas City's grasp on first place in the AFC West and secured the tiebreaker over Oakland with a perfect record over their classic rival on the year.
Chiefs' quarterback Patrick Mahomes completed 15-of-29 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown in the game, finding tailback Darrel Williams for a 3-yard touchdown on Kansas City's opening possession.
Mahomes also managed to find the end zone with his legs a bit later - scrambling for a 13-yard score midway through the second quarter to year to extend Kansas City's advantage – before safety Juan Thornhill picked off Raiders' quarterback Derek Carr a possession later and brought it all the way back for a 46-yard pick-six.
Thornhill's interception was one of three takeaways for Kansas City on the afternoon, including an interception by fellow safety Tyrann Mathieu that set up Williams' score early in the game.
The performance maintained a trend by the Chiefs' defense, which has forced 63 turnovers – the most by any team vs. divisional opponents - against AFC West rivals since 2015.
Kansas City later built on its lead when tailback LeSean McCoy rushed ahead for a 3-yard touchdown, pushing the Chiefs ahead by 31 and effectively putting the contest out of reach. Rookie tailback Darwin Thompson also found the end zone late in the game, plunging ahead for a 3-yard touchdown.
Chiefs' tight end Travis Kelce led all pass-catchers with 90 yards through the air while defensive linemen Chris Jones and Tanoh Kpassagnon each tallied a sack defensively. Interestingly enough, the defense – which held Oakland scoreless until early in the fourth quarter – tallied its first shutout through three quarters of action since doing so last season against the Raiders at Arrowhead.
Kansas City has now won 10 of its last 11 meetings with Oakland, and now with four regular-season games left, the Chiefs own a two-game lead and the tiebreaker over the Raiders in the AFC West.
The Chiefs return to action next Sunday as they travel to New England to take on the Patriots.
