FULL BOX SCORE

1. Mahomes, Chiefs continue to win with their brand. Gone are the days of the wildly explosive Kansas City offense that struck fear in the hearts of the rest of the NFL, and in its place is a frustratingly consistent offense that is incredibly difficult to force off the field. Kansas City converted 12 of 18 third-down attempts on Monday night and can be thankful for that Patrick Mahomes and his artistry to make this possible. His 7-yard flip to Samaje Perine as a touchdown was a prime example of Mahomes finding ways to succeed amid chaos, as were his fourteen connections with Travis Kelce (for 100 meters). Even after spraining his ankle on the Perine TD, Mahomes was able to keep the train moving, albeit slowly. However, the speed didn’t matter; actually it was an advantage. The Chiefs added a relatively new wrinkle Monday night, dominating on the ground with a methodical, grinding, run-heavy scoring drive that ate up 8:26 of the game clock and ended in a four-yard slant on DeAndre Hopkins for the go-ahead signal. touchdown in the fourth. When they won possession in overtime, everyone in Arrowhead Stadium and the national viewing public knew what was coming: another slow, steady drive built on hard Kareem Hunt carries and accurate short to medium strides. The final two plays were fitting: a crisp pass to Kelce inside the Tampa Bay 5-yard line, and a physical 2-yard Hunt touchdown run to put the Chiefs up 8-0. It’s not explosive or spectacular, but for nine weeks the Chiefs have proven they will win and challenge any opponent in their path to stop them.
2. Buccaneers adapt after offensive losses. Of Mike Evans And Chris Godwin Out of action, Tampa Bay entered Week 9 knowing it had to change the way it operated to give itself the best chance to win. Enter the tight end Cade Ottonthe de facto WR1 who went crazy a week earlier and followed it up by stacking up some quality catches to keep this offense going. The Bucs’ verticality largely disappeared, but… Baker Mayfield found a way to keep the offense afloat by leaning heavily on Otton, a multi-headed rushing attack and a more lateral passing attack that saw them string together two touchdown drives in the second and third quarters. Even with the game on the line, Tampa Bay didn’t attempt a deep shot, relying on Mayfield’s improvisation and ability to find targets while on the run. His touchdown pass to Ryan Miller was the perfect ending to a drive that required Mayfield to make magic with a cast led by Sterling Shepard, Rakim Jarrett And Trey Palmerillustrating how Mayfield’s determination is a big part of what makes him an effective NFL quarterback. They lost on Monday night, but Buccaneers fans should feel good about having their offense in the hands of offensive coordinator Liam Coen, who proved the loss of his team’s top two pass catchers isn’t fatal.
3. D-Hop is making its mark. DeAndre Hopkins joined the Chiefs just over a week ago and had a quiet debut, catching two passes for 29 yards. That was not the case on Monday evening. Hopkins caught eight passes for 86 yards, including a tough grab from 35 yards between two defenders that set up their first touchdown of the night: another Hopkins catch from 1 yard out. When Kansas City acquired the veteran, it hoped he would provide Mahomes with a legitimate receiver option in a cast that desperately needed one. He did that against the Buccaneers, giving Mahomes a target that didn’t exist in the wide receiver group. His second score – a five-yard grab caught on a hard slant along the goal line – felt inevitable. Consider this transaction a success for now.
4. Bowles’ defense is out of gas. Tampa Bay head coach Todd Bowles is known for being aggressive with his blitzes to wreak havoc on opposing offenses, but Monday night he rarely had the opportunity to unleash his rushers. With the ground game keeping them honest and Mahomes’ improvisation providing quite a challenge, the Buccaneers blew just five times and recorded a pressure rate of less than 25 percent. Instead, they opted to play coverage hoping their base rushes would come home. That resulted in a low-scoring affair, but the real indictment of Bowles’ unit came when Mahomes and Co. embarked on a slow and steady scoring drive in the fourth quarter, imposing their will on the Buccaneers’ defense for 15 plays. By the time the Chiefs entered Tampa Bay’s red zone, the Buccaneers appeared exhausted. Andy Reid’s boaconstrictor-esque approach worked to near perfection, and when the Buccaneers managed to push the game into overtime, no one was surprised when Reid followed the same blueprint and pulverized the Buccaneers defense into powder with a 10-play, 70 – yard march. When the dust settled, one thing was clear: the Buccaneers were losing the war of attrition to the defending champions.
5. Spagnuolo’s defense survives a challenging night. Mahomes may draw attention, but Spagnuolo’s unity is a big reason why the Chiefs won the championship last season. It’s been a sneaky force and a great addition to Reid’s methodical offense this season, but it took on an unusual look Monday night. The Chiefs struggled to apply pressure, failed to stop Mayfield and the Buccaneers in the final two and a half minutes of regulation and lucked out when the Chiefs won the overtime coin toss. There were of course bright spots. Kansas City bottled up Tampa Bay’s rushing attack and held it under 100 yards as a team. The Chiefs held the Buccaneers under 300 yards as a team on a wet night in Kansas City. They forced two Buccaneers punts after taking a 17-10 lead late in the third, giving the Chiefs two possessions to tie and then take the lead. But for the first time in a while, they weren’t the suffocating unit they were known to be. Mayfield regularly found open targets on our routes and was able to keep the momentum going with his clear favorite target in Oton. The Chiefs emerged victorious, but we can be confident that with the help of this game tape we can correct some things in the future.

Buccaneers-Chiefs Next Generation Stats (via NFL Pro): Deandre Hopkins caught six of his seven targets on in-breaking routes for 70 yards and two touchdowns, his most yards on such routes since Week 14, 2020. Hopkins’ +8.6 receiving EPA generated on in-breakers is also his highest since the start of 2018.

NFL Research: The last time a team won an overtime game 7-0 or better to remain undefeated was in 2009, when the Saints defeated Washington in Week 13. The Saints went on to win Super Bowl XLIV at the end of the 2009 season.