The Packers were forced to start their young, second-year backup quarterback Jordan Love against the Chiefs on Sunday, as Rodgers was unable to play due to testing positive for COVID-19.
Love struggled for most of his first career start, unable to get his team to convert on a single third down until late in the fourth quarter in the 13-7 loss.
He finished the game 19 of 34 with 190 yards and a touchdown, as well as an interception that was hauled in by Chiefs’ cornerback L’Jarius Sneed in the fourth quarter.
The Chiefs defense also managed to keep Packers’ all-star wide receiver Devonte Adams in check as he was held to six catches for just 42 yards. Safety Tyrann Mathieu had one of his best games of the season thus far, recording 5 tackles and a sack.
While Kansas City’s defense showed promise for the second week in a row, the offense continued to look flat and stagnant.
Mahomes led the team down the field on their first drive of the game, resulting in a touchdown pass to Travis Kelce, but after that their struggles continued.
Kelce was dropping passes for the second week in a row, Tyreek Hill continued to get doubled and was unable to get open for most of the game, and Mahomes couldn’t find any rhythm. He finished the game 20-37 with just 166 yards and a single touchdown.
Although the offense continued to look out of tune, there were still some good takeaways.
The running game continued to show promise as Darrel Williams was able to run for 70 yards behind some solid blocking from the offensive line.
Another promising glimpse came on what was the last big play of the evening. On third down with less than two minutes left in the game and the lead, the Chiefs needed just one more first down to end it.
Mahomes dropped back and scrambled to his right as the pocket quickly collapsed, throwing a bullet on the run to Tyreek Hill to get the first down and put the Packers to sleep.
Although it was only one play, it was a glimpse of a vintage Mahomes, the quarterback we are all used to. Hopefully, that type of play can help wake both him and the rest of this offense up.
Kansas City will travel to Las Vegas next week to play the Raiders in a big divisional matchup during the Sunday night prime time slot.
