The defense held out for a long time, and the Chiefs were the only teams, along with the 1990 49ers, to start the season 3-0 after two consecutive Super Bowl wins (San Francisco started 10-0).

“Yeah, I mean, we didn’t play well – I mean, actually all three games,” Mahomes said. “We were able to win. That speaks to the character of the team, the determination, how we’ve handled these situations before.”

Hollywood Brown’s preseason injury appears to have had a bigger impact on the Chiefs’ passing woes than initially expected. Through three games, KC’s passing attack was down to Rashee Rice or bust.

Mahomes won his 77th game in his 99th career start in Week 3, the most wins by a quarterback in his first 100 starts since 1950 (Tom Brady, 76).

With the defense backing off to prevent the big plays, Mahomes was forced to throw the ball short. Of his 39 pass attempts Sunday night, 28 were under 10 yards, according to Next Gen Stats — 22 of 28 for 143 yards and two touchdowns. On passes over 10 yards, Mahomes was just 4 of 8 for 74 yards and an interception.

The offensive struggles to start the season can be attributed in part to the quiet Travis Kelce. The star tight end caught four of five passes for 30 yards on Sunday night. This season, Kelce has 69 yards on eight catches and zero scores.

“Yeah, it’s crazy because the respect that teams still have for Travis is just unbelievable,” Mahomes said when asked about Kelce’s quiet night. “It’s well-deserved, but we’re calling a lot of plays for Travis, and it’s like two or three people are going to him. So, I mean, he gets it. I think that’s the great thing about him: He wants to impact the game, but at the end of the day, he wants to win. I’m going to try my best to get him the ball whenever he’s there, whenever he’s free. But I think the more plays Rashee makes, the more we can run the football, the more we can get (Xavier) Worthy involved, that’s going to give Travis more opportunities. I mean, people really make it a point to take him away, and that frees up other guys.”

It’s not unusual for offenses to take time to get into shape. At least the two-time Super Bowl champions are piling up wins as Mahomes and Andy Reid figure out their formula for 2024.