Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes: Struggles without Kelce in opener
Mahomes completed 21 of 39 passes for 226 yards with two touchdowns and one interception in the Chiefs' 21-20 loss to the Lions on Thursday night. He also rushed six times for 45 yards.
Mahomes figured to have more of a challenge than usual with Travis Kelce (knee) sidelined, and that ultimately came to fruition, although largely due to an utterly forgettable night on the part of Kadarius Toney. The third-year wideout's shaky hands directly led to a pick-six early in the third quarter that proved to be critical, given the one-point final margin of victory for Detroit. Mahomes spread the ball around plenty in Kelce's absence, recording multiple completions to six different targets and connecting with a whopping 11 players overall. However, even the two-time NFL MVP couldn't overcome the long odds Kansas City faced on its last two offensive plays, when a Toney drop and an offensive holding call put the Chiefs in a second-and-20 scenario they never recovered from. Kelce should have a solid chance of suiting up in a Week 2 road matchup against the Jaguars a week from Sunday, which would give Mahomes a very good opportunity of rebounding with much better passing numbers.
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