By Nate Taylor, Josh Kendall and Mark Puleo

The Kansas City Chiefs win consistently, but the consistent style of those victories is far from flashy: a dominant defense with big saves in the closing stages of games and an offense that does just enough to win.

After allowing a touchdown on their first drive, the Chiefs’ stingy defensive line ravaged Atlanta’s offensive line the rest of the night, tying up star running back Bijan Robinson and putting constant pressure on Kirk Cousins. Kansas City’s offense took advantage in the middle quarters, when Patrick Mahomes repeatedly found Rashee Rice to string together long drives in the third quarter and take the lead into the final frame.

In the fourth period, the Chiefs defense twice held Atlanta out of the end zone on late drives despite long marches to the red zone. With just over four minutes left, a Cousins ​​dart to Kyle Pitts in the end zone drew heavy contact from Chiefs defensive back Bryan Cook on a play that appeared to warrant pass interference, but no flag was thrown. The Falcons gave the ball away on downs on the next play and saw their final drive end on a failed fourth-down attempt in the final minute.

Chiefs defenders stars again

Just like last week, the Chiefs defense, led by coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, sealed the team’s victory and improved its record to 3-0. Twice in the fourth quarter, the Chiefs denied the Falcons on fourth-down snaps inside the red zone. Spagnuolo unleashed all-out blitzes to force Cousins ​​into incompletions in the end zone.

The Falcons’ final possession ended when they couldn’t muster the necessary rushing yards on short-yardage plays to continue their potential game-winning drive. On a 4th-and-1 play, linebacker Nick Bolton, who had left the game earlier with what appeared to be a hip or lower back injury, tackled Robinson behind the line of scrimmage for a loss of three yards. When the Chiefs needed such a performance, their defense held the Falcons to just 17 points, the fewest they’ve allowed this season. — Nate Taylor, Chiefs Reporter

Explosiveness still lacking in Kansas City offense

The Chiefs’ offense is still very much a work in progress through three games this season. Mahomes hasn’t been able to throw as many deep passes as he or coach Andy Reid would like, as the left tackle position, with new starter Wanya Morris, has been a bit of a pain in the neck. The Falcons have often forced Mahomes and the Chiefs offense to matriculate the ball downfield on drives that require 10 or more plays.

In the fourth quarter, Mahomes didn’t get the help he needed to continue the Chiefs’ drives and keep the ball away from Cousins. Tight end Travis Kelce couldn’t secure the ball on a pass up the middle of the field that should have been a first down, with the ball knocked out by safety Jessie Bates III. The Chiefs’ next drive ended after just three plays when rookie receiver Xavier Worthy got stopped running his crossing route, a third-down incompletion that forced the team to punt. The Chiefs were fortunate to win despite not scoring in the fourth quarter. — Tailor

Falcons held on but then lost the possession battle

At one point in the third quarter, Kansas City led the time of possession battle 30:33-12:46 and had run 63 plays, compared to Atlanta’s 26. The Falcons were able to even those numbers out somewhat in the fourth quarter, running 30 plays in their final three possessions.

The Chiefs finished with 72 plays to the Falcons’ 56 and outrebounded Atlanta 349-311. Josh Kendall, Falcons Reporter

Cousins ​​​​reaches major milestone

Cousins ​​quietly reached a career milestone by reaching 40,000 regular-season passing yards, making him the fifth-fastest player in NFL history (153 games) to reach that mark. Cousins, who played at Washington and Minnesota before joining Atlanta as a free agent in the offseason, finished the game 20-of-29 for 230 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He has 40,097 career regular-season passing yards. — Kendall

Atlanta’s O-line plagued by injuries

The Falcons’ injury-laced good fortune may have run out Sunday night. Atlanta lost starting right tackle Kaleb McGary (knee) and starting center Drew Dalman (ankle) in the second quarter. The severity of the injuries wasn’t immediately known, but neither returned to the game. Storm Norton finished the game at right tackle and Ryan Neuzil took over at center. — Kendall

Required reading

(Photo: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)