Four Takeaways from the Kansas City Chiefs’ 26-25 Win Over the Cincinnati Bengals

The Kansas City Chiefs hosted the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2 of NFL action, and there was plenty to take away from the Sunday afternoon contest.

Sep 15, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) runs the ball against Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Dax Hill (23) during the first half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Another Kansas City Chiefs outing against the Cincinnati Bengals, another instant classic matchup between two of the NFL’s best quarterbacks.

In the latest installment of Kansas City versus Cincinnati, it was the home team that came away with a victory. After a back-and-forth battle and some late-game dramatics, the Chiefs pulled through and kicker Harrison Butker drained a game-winning field goal to bring his team to 2-0 on the year.Sep 15, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) runs the ball against Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Dax Hill (23) during the first half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn ImagesWith that in mind, here are four takeaways from Sunday’s game.

A slow start and some questionable decisions limited the Chiefs’ offense early
Things took a while to get going for Kansas City on Sunday, as the team got outgained by an average of 2.2 yards per play. Posting 4.3 yards per clip and 3.5 yards per pass, Andy Reid and company committed to running the football and took a lot of time on its opening possession. Near the end zone, halfback Isiah Pacheco was stopped three times and Reid opted against going back to Carson Steele. Choosing a field goal over a touchdown attempt on fourth down was a poor decision.Speaking of poor decisions, the Chiefs’ second drive lasted just one play. Mahomes locked on to targeting tight end Travis Kelce, ultimately being intercepted by linebacker Akiem Davis-Gaither. That set the Bengals up for their first touchdown of the game. Mahomes and Kansas City bounced back with a score on their next possession, but a slow start made things difficult in half No. 1.

Kansas City took advantage of Cincinnati’s bad run defense
In the Bengals’ Week 1 loss to the New England Patriots, running back Rhamondre Stevenson toted the ball 25 times for 120 yards and a touchdown. A lot of that production was after contact, further highlighting how poor of a defensive effort Cincinnati had. Coming into this weekend’s game, Zack Eisen of Kansas City Chiefs On SI pondered whether committing to the run and a steady diet of Pacheco could achieve some success in Week 2. It certainly did.

In the first quarter alone, the Chiefs attempted 10 runs and gave Pacheco seven of them. The veteran running back totaled 29 yards on those totes, although his average was dragged down by the short-yardage stops. In all, Kansas City spread 32 carries between Pacheco, Mahomes, Steele, Kelce and Xavier Worthy. Amassing 149 yards factored into a sufficient overall performance.

Observations on covering tight ends and the Chiefs’ cornerbacks
In my preview for this game, I listed Mike Gesicki as a player to watch for Cincinnati’s side. After a quiet Week 1, it made sense for him to get more involved on offense. He certainly did so (seven receptions for 91 yards), but the rest of the tight end room also got some work in. Veteran Drew Sample and rookie Erick All Jr. combined for 60 yards, too. Social media seemed to place a lot of blame on linebacker Nick Bolton live. He deserves a good chunk of it, absolutely, but there’s plenty to go around.

Another thought on the defense: Kansas City’s supporting pieces at cornerback came back down to earth after a strong Week 1. Nazeeh Johnson lost on an Andrei Iosivas touchdown, Watson surrendered a 47-yard pass in the third quarter and Iosivas scored on another rep with Joshua Williams failing to contain him. Trent McDuffie largely played well and it isn’t time to hit the panic button, but the volatility of the depth is worth keeping an eye on.

The Chiefs-Bengals rivalry isn’t going anywhere – or is it?
Earlier this weekend, my colleague Mark Van Sickle wrote that the Chiefs could effectively put this ongoing rivalry with Cincinnati to rest with a win. After all, last season saw the Bengals miss the playoffs and another victory would’ve given Kansas City even more success over their two-time conference title game foes. It’s a completely fair perspective to have. In this writer’s opinion, though, the feud was always going to continue regardless of Sunday’s outcome

It’s impossible to predict what the rest of the season has in store for either of these teams. With that said, the Chiefs maintain championship expectations and the Bengals showed they (still) have what it takes to seriously challenge them. The only question now becomes whether Joe Burrow and Co. can climb out of a 0-2 hole and still make the postseason. It’s much easier said than done, so perhaps the rivalry gets put on hold.

Side note: Kansas City’s left tackle performance needed to be mentioned. There wasn’t quite enough room to add analysis here, but it’s coming soon.