Kansas City Chiefs Now the Lone Unbeaten Team in NFL

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) of the Kansas City Chiefs walks off the field after beating the San Francisco 49ers 28–18 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., on Oct. 20, 2024. Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images

Can anyone stop the Kansas City Chiefs?

With a dominant 28–18 victory over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Kansas City is the only remaining unbeaten team in the NFL at 7–0. The Chiefs have their flaws, but they are finding ways to win each week.

Patrick Mahomes was just 16 of 27 for 154 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions (44.4 rating) against San Francisco, and the Chiefs still managed to win by 10 points.

“There’s been a lot of turnovers, especially by me,” Mahomes said at his postgame news conference. “I think it’s just showing the versatility of our team. It’s not just about me, it’s not just about the stats and the light show and stuff like that. It’s about playing team football, and I believe if we continue to work, we’ll get better offensively throwing the ball down the field.

“But until then, it’s nice to know that we have a great running game, we’ve got a great defense and we’re able to execute whenever the time comes to win football games.”

Kansas City is trying to become the first team in NFL history to win three consecutive Super Bowls. The Chiefs are certainly on the right track and lead the AFC West over the Los Angeles Chargers (3–2).

Mahomes is a two-time NFL MVP and three-time Super Bowl champion, but he is not having an exceptional season by his standards. Following Sunday’s game against the 49ers, Mahomes is 16th in the NFL with 1,389 yards passing with six touchdowns and eight interceptions.

Nonetheless, he has found ways to win games by eluding sacks and making big plays downfield. He had a 33-yard scramble after avoiding a sack and scored from 1 yard to give Kansas City a 21–12 lead with 14:13 left in the game against San Francisco.

Despite some of the struggles of the offense, the Chiefs’ defense has been solid and is fifth in the NFL, allowing 17.2 points per game.

“We’ve got plenty of room to improve on things,” coach Andy Reid said in his postgame news conference following the game against San Francico. “Eventually guys will start coming back. But the thing I appreciate the most are guys stepping up and then the other guys trusting them to step up and believing in them.”

The Minnesota Vikings entered Week 7 also unbeaten but they lost 31–29 to the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

The Chiefs won Super Bowl LVII in 2023 with a 38–35 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles in Glendale, Ariz.

The following year, Kansas City defeated the San Francisco 49ers 25–22 in Paradise, Nevada. Mahomes was instrumental in leading the Chiefs to those victories and was named Super Bowl MVP in both games.

Kansas City is the favorite to win another Super Bowl this season, followed by the 49ers, Ravens, and Detroit Lions. Despite flaws, the Chiefs players are confident they have the system in place to win another title. It’s hard to argue with the results.

“We have a team that truly prepares the next man; we help the next man,” Chiefs safety Justin Reid said at the news conference following the game against San Francisco. “We’re all in. We communicate daily. We talk about, ‘What if this happens? What if that happens?’ [For] the next man, we take time after practice—we meet up on our own time—[and] we still talk coverage.

“It works. Guys are confident out there. We pride ourselves on our physicality—that across the board, [our] DBs tackle. We are physical. We’re going to play press coverage—and we’re going to make it tough on you. You’ve got to find the ways to beat us.”