LAS VEGAS — Patrick Mahomes didn't make many mistakes Sunday, but one of his few errors could've cost the Chiefs the game. He needed his defense to come to the rescue — and it did. Kansas City kept the Raiders off the scoreboard even after facing first-and-goal at the 3-yard line, changing the tenor of the game and allowing the two-time defending champion Chiefs to continue their domination in Las Vegas with a 27-20 victory to remain undefeated.
That sequence occurred late in the third quarter with the Chiefs clinging to a 17-13 lead. "It's easy in that situation to let them kind of get into the end zone because it's not really on them," Mahomes said. "It was on the offense that put them in position, but they stood their ground.
The defense made a big-time stop and we were able to carry momentum into a win." The Chiefs (7-0) extended their winning streak to 13 games, including the playoffs. Their last loss was at home to Las Vegas, but the Chiefs are 5-0 against the Raiders at Allegiant Stadium and 6-0 there including the Super Bowl in February.
Las Vegas (2-6) has lost four consecutive games, but this was the first time the Raiders had scored at least 20 points since a 20-16 victory over Cleveland on Sept. 29. Mahomes passed for 262 yards and two touchdowns, becoming the fastest quarterback in NFL history to reach 30,000 yards.
He accomplished that in his 103rd game; Matthew Stafford had hit that mark at 109. Mahomes' top target was Travis Kelce, who had 10 catches for 9.