6 winners from Chiefs’ Week 8 victory over Commanders: Both sides of the ball contribute to well-rounded performance
Kansas City moves to 5-3 on the season.
The Kansas City Chiefs secured their third straight victory as they moved to 5-3 on the season with a 28-7 win over the Washington Commanders on Monday night.
Both teams got off to a sloppy start offensively, and the 7-7 tie at halftime indicated the game would be a dogfight. However, the Chiefs came back out firing on all cylinders, scoring touchdowns on their first three drives of the second half. Kansas City’s defense would put the clamps on Washington’s offense, forcing two punts and an interception to close out the night.
Let’s examine our six winners from the Chiefs’ primetime victory over the Commanders.
RB Kareem Hunt
Hunt’s statistics won’t wow anybody, but for those who have watched every Chiefs game this season, you know he has been their most reliable and efficient running back. He has been automatic picking up first downs during short-yardage situations, and he leads the team with five total touchdowns.
Two of those came on Monday night against Washington — a one-yard rushing TD, and a two-yard receiving score on a broken down scramble throw by quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Hunt has quietly become the most unstoppable short-yardage player in the NFL, and an invaluable part of K.C.’s offense.
DE Mike Danna
Danna has been quiet this season as he’s battled through early season injuries, but he made his presence known on Monday night, recording three tackles, one sack, and one interception. The latter was a pass that bounced off the hands of Commanders wide receiver Deebo Samuel, but credit Danna for making the play.
Danna’s sack came on a crucial third-and-11 as Washington’s offense was in K.C. territory, threatening to make it a one-possession game. Hopefully that performance gives Danna some momentum that he can carry through the rest of the season with the Chiefs being thin along the defensive line.
QB Patrick Mahomes
It was a frustrating start for Mahomes, as he threw interceptions on each of the Chiefs’ first two drives of the game. The first was a great play by Commanders cornerback Marshon Lattimore, and the second bounced off the hands of a wide open tight end Travis Kelce.
Unsurprisingly, that didn’t keep Mahomes down. He went on to throw for three TDs on the night, finishing the game with 299 yards and a 73 percent completion percentage. Mahomes’ MVP campaign is heating up, leading the league in total TDs with 21 and ranking second in passing yards with 2,379.
DE George Karlaftis
Karlaftis was a menace all night against the Commanders. He flushed quarterback Marcus Mariota out of the pocket several times several times throughout the night, and finished the game with three total tackles, one sack, and one pass defensed.
Karlaftis has by far been the Chiefs’ most steady pass rusher this season. He leads the team in sacks with 4.5 and tackles for loss with seven. Karlaftis has opened things up for other pass rushers, and when he doesn’t quite get home for a sack, he forces QBs into bad throws.
WR Rashee Rice
Rice was once again a force in his second game back, catching all nine of his targets for 93 yards and one TD. He also added two rushes for 12 yards, coming up just inches short of a rushing TD near the goal line.
Rust has not been a factor for Rice, and he is already producing like a No. 1 WR. His combination of speed, power, and great hands make him a matchup nightmare for opposing defensive backs. Rice has also opened things up for other pass catchers, as Mahomes continues to spread the ball around.
Chiefs’ secondary
I’m going to lump several K.C.’s defensive backs together for this one. Trent McDuffie, Jaylen Watson, Chamarri Conner, Bryan Cook, and Jaden Hicks combined for a whopping 22 total tackles against the Commanders’ offense.
All of them made impressive one-on-one tackles in the open field at one point in the game. DBs aren’t always the greatest tacklers, but that is far from the case for the Chiefs, which goes a long way in preventing big plays.
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