Kenneth Walker III rushed for 173 yards and two touchdowns in his debut, helping the Kansas City Chiefs defeat the Denver Broncos 31-10 on Monday night at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. Patrick Mahomes returned from a nine-month knee recovery to throw for two scores and run for another, snapping a three-game skid against their AFC West rivals.
The Kansas City Chiefs opened their NFL season with a 31-10 victory over the Denver Broncos. The contest marked the return of quarterback Patrick Mahomes, playing his first game since suffering a knee injury in December. Three-time Super Bowl winner Travis Kelce moved second on the NFL’s all-time list for most receiving yards by a tight end with a 59-yard play for the Chiefs.
Kenneth Walker III Dominates in Chiefs Debut
While attention centered on Mahomes and his surgically repaired left knee, it was new signing Kenneth Walker III who stole the spotlight. The former Seattle Seahawks star, who was the Most Valuable Player for the Seattle Seahawks in last season’s Super Bowl, made the biggest impact by rushing for 173 yards and scoring twice on his Chiefs debut.
Against the Denver Broncos, Kenneth Walker III rushed for 173 yards, averaging 7.5 yards per carry across his 23 carries. The ex-Seahawks star also had three catches for 18 yards, finishing with the most yards rushing by a Chiefs player since Jamaal Charles ran for 226 against the Colts in 2012, the year before Andy Reid became their coach.
Compare this to the Denver Broncos’ offence, and the difference is clear. The Broncos’ entire offensive unit carried for just 61 yards across four players. Their longest rush came from a 17-yard carry by J.K. Dobbins.
I've been saying it all off-season that K9 is going to make a difference,
said Mahomes. That offensive line and K9, they took over the game. It went really well.
He did a really nice job,
Reid said, and you never know going in how many times you're going to give him the ball. That's not a calculated thing.
Patrick Mahomes Overcomes Knee Recovery Questions
The big question, even after Mahomes participated in the entire offseason program and every practice of training camp, was how his surgically repaired left knee would hold up nine months to the day since he tore his ACL. He erased many of those doubts when he capped the Chiefs’ opening drive with a 15-yard touchdown run.
You see that goalline, you’re a football player and you just try and get in the end zone,
Mahomes said after the game when asked if his time on the sidelines had made him more cautious.
Mahomes didn’t appear to be affected by the knee, or the brace he wore on it, throwing for 184 yards and two scores while running for another to help the Chiefs snap a three-game skid against the rival that ended their nine-year run as division champs. Kansas City exacted some revenge on Denver for stealing their AFC West crown with the 31-10 victory Monday night, Sept. 14, 2026.
Denver Offense Struggles Under New Coordinator
The Broncos, meanwhile, were abysmal on offense in their first game with coordinator Davis Webb calling the plays. The Broncos levelled the scores in the first quarter, but quarterback Bo Nix was sacked four times and intercepted once as the Chiefs pulled away. A microcosm of the failure came on a fourth-and-1 play early in the third quarter. The Chiefs, leading 14-7, had a fourth-and-1 at their own 40-yard line. Get a stop, and Denver would be set up in a good position to drive for a tying score. The Broncos blitzed up the middle, linebacker Alex Singleton trying to burst inside to blow up the play. With one swift cut, Walker bounced outside and outran the defense on a 60-yard touchdown that took all the air out of the Broncos. Safety Brandon Jones was in position to tackle Walker inside the 10-yard line, but his attempt to bring the physical running back down barely made an impact. Dreadful tackling was a theme all night for the Broncos.
Historic Play Design Seals the Victory
The Kansas City Chiefs apparently reached way back into football history for one of their touchdowns Monday night. It was hard to see,
Walker said of the film, but we worked it over and over in practice. We felt it was going to work and it did.
