The Kansas City Chiefs kicked off their 2020 campaign with a solid victory over the Houston Texans, 34-20, on Thursday night at Arrowhead Stadium.
2020 will be the sixth consecutive season Kansas City starts with a 1-0 record. After allowing Houston running back Davis Johnson to pound his way into the endzone for a 19-yard score, the Chiefs offense went on to score 31 unanswered points going into the fourth quarter.
Reigning Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes picked Houston’s zone defense apart, completing 24-of-32 passes for 211 yards, and 3 touchdowns. Mahomes and the Chiefs offense began their scoring threat early in the second quarter with a six-yard TD pass to Travis Kelce, capping off an 11-play drive and tieing the game at seven.
After forcing the Texans to punt, the Chiefs, starting at their own 9-yard line, marched back down the field in 16 plays to take a 14-7 lead following a two-completion to receiver Sammy Watkins for the score.
Watkins would go on to have a spectacular night, making seven receptions for 82 yards and scoring a touchdown.
Kansas City would get the ball again late in the first half after Houston kicker Ka’imi Fairbairn missed a 51-yard field goal. In four plays, Mahomes led the Chiefs offense down the field from their own 41-yard line to the Houston nine, with 4 seconds on the clock to set up kicker Harrison Butker for a 29-yard field goal to give the Chiefs a 17-7 lead at halftime.
The Chiefs continued their scoring threat after getting the ball to start the second half. On the ninth play of the drive, Mahomes handed the ball off to rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who raced down the field for a 27-yard touchdown to put the Chiefs up 24-7 early in the third.
Edwards-Helaire, 21, would finish the game with 138 yards on 25 rushing attempts and a TD, becoming the youngest player in NFL history to rush for more than 135 yards and a score in an NFL debut.
Kansas City’s final TD of the night was a 2-yard pass to Tyreek Hill to pull the Chiefs ahead of the Texans 31-7.
Houston finally answered on their next two consecutive drives, including a 19-yard pass from quarterback Deshaun Watson to receiver Will Fuller in the endzone. The following drive would also end in a Houston Texans touchdown with Watson calling his own number and scoring a two-yard touchdown with his legs to bring the deficit down to 11 points with over two minutes on the game clock.
The Texans opted for the onside kick with 2:38 left in the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for Houston, Ka’imi Fairbairn’s kick traveled 13 yards and was picked up by Chiefs safety Armani Watts, who returned it 28 yards to the Houston 20-yard line. There, the Chiefs offense ran the clock down to 33 seconds and sent Harrison Butker to deliver the final blow with a 19-yard field goal to give Kansas City the 34-20 victory.
The Chiefs will now rest over the following ten days and prepare for a divisional matchup in Los Angeles when they take on the Chargers in Week two.
