Kareem Hunt and Xavier Worthy rushed for touchdowns, Harrison Butker kicked four field goals, Patrick Mahomes passed for 331 yards and the host Kansas City Chiefs defeated the New Orleans Saints 26-13 on Monday night.
JuJu Smith-Schuster caught seven passes for 130 yards and Travis Kelce made nine receptions for 70 yards to help the Chiefs (5-0) overcome the absence of injured wide receivers Hollywood Brown and Rashee Rice.
Hunt rushed for 102 yards, while Mahomes completed 28 of 39 passes with one interception.
New Orleans quarterback Derek Carr completed 18 of 28 passes for 165 yards and two touchdowns with one interception before leaving the game because of an oblique injury in the fourth quarter.
Rashid Shaheed finished with four catches for 86 yards and a touchdown, but the Saints (2-3) lost their third consecutive game.
The Chiefs had an opportunity to extend their 16-7 halftime lead on the first possession of the third quarter, but Butker’s 51-yard field goal hit the right upright and caromed wide.
Kansas City drove to the New Orleans 2-yard line on its next possession, but a Mahomes pass was intercepted in the end zone by defensive tackle Khalen Saunders, who returned to the New Orleans 35. Both teams went scoreless in the third quarter.
On the second play of the fourth quarter Carr threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Foster Moreau, pulling New Orleans within 16-13. Blake Grupe’s extra-point kick was no good.
The Chiefs needed just five plays to answer as Mahomes connected with Smith-Schuster for a 50-yard gain and Kelce received a direct snap and handed to Worthy for a 3-yard touchdown run and a 23-13 lead.
Butker’s 38-yard field goal completed the scoring with 3:03 remaining.
On Kansas City’s first possession, Hunt ran 5 yards for a touchdown that gave the hosts a 7-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
The Chiefs increased the lead on a 26-yard field goal from Butker before Carr threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Shaheed to pull New Orleans within 10-7.
Kansas City overcame a second-and-34 on its way to a 34-yard Butker field goal, and the kicker added a 28-yarder to increase the lead to nine points entering halftime.
