Final score: Chiefs dominate Bears 26-3 on Sunday Night Football

The Kansas City Chiefs thrashed the Chicago Bears on the national stage, winning 26-3 on Sunday Night Football. Patrick Mahomes was 23 of 33 for 251 passing yards and three total touchdowns in the game.

The Chiefs scored on each of the three possessions they had in the first half.

Kansas City struck first when Mahomes was flushed out of the pocket to the left on third-and-5. Mahomes picked up the first-down yardage and more as he ran for a 12-yard touchdown. Kicker Harrison Butker added three points with a career-long 56-yard field goal.

The Chiefs’ next touchdown strike came late in the second quarter when Mahomes hit tight end Travis Kelce with a 6-yard touchdowns pass.

Terrell Suggs made an impact early on in his Chiefs debut. From the right defensive end position on third-and-13 in the first quarter, Suggs forced Trubisky out of the pocket, where Frank Clark picked up the easy sack. Kansas City went into the locker room with a 17-0 lead, as Chicago fans booed the Bears off the field. Chris Jones and Reggie Ragland recorded sacks in the fourth quarter.

The Chiefs took a 23-3 lead in the fourth quarter when Mahomes found running back Damien Williams on a wheel route for a touchdown. Butker missed the extra point but made a 32-yarder with less than two minutes to go in the game.

Chiefs highlights

Stats of note

Patrick Mahomes: 23/33 for 251 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions for passer rating of 112.1. He also scored a rushing touchdown. He was sacked once.

Mitchell Trubisky: 18/33 for 157 yards, no touchdowns or interceptions and a passer rating of 67.4. He was sacked three times.

Travis Kelce: 74 yards and a touchdown on eight receptions.

Tyreek Hill: 72 yards on five catches.

Damien Williams: had 92 yards and a touchdown (65 yards on 16 carries, 27 yards and a touchdown on three catches).

Rapid reaction

It is amazing to say in Week 16, but the Chiefs defense is the best unit on the team — and it’s not particularly arguable.

The offense still did plenty to win on Sunday, and we might have been spoiled in Kansas City with just how strong it was in 2018. After the Chiefs scored in all three possessions in the first half, it took three drives to get back in the end zone in the second half.

But with the defense playing this well, the Chiefs can afford occasional struggles.

On a separate note, Mahomes scored three total touchdowns, and this night in Chicago was about the gesture shown in this tweet more than anything else. Many teams — not just the Bears — made a grave mistake by not finding a way to select Mahomes in the 2017 NFL Draft.

He won’t win this year’s MVP, but the next decade or two will sure be fun to watch.