What We Saw: Week 3

Series Navigation

Chiefs @ Falcons

Final Score: Chiefs 22, Falcons 17

Writer: Darian Hudock (@DarianQB_List)

It’s the second week in a row Patrick Mahomes has thrown for less than 220 passing yards, and the second week in a row the Chiefs have added another win to their chase of the never-before-seen three-peat. Undrafted rookie Carson Steele ran the ball well, and Rashee Rice looks like the second coming of the Slant God with 14 targets leading the team to their undefeated start to the year. The Chiefs’ defense, led by Chris Jones and their pass rush, made things difficult for the Falcons to pass or run the ball for the entire game. In the closing moments, the defense stuffed consecutive run attempts inside the red zone to force a turnover on downs and win the game.

Three Up

Rashee Rice – 12 Catches, 110 Yards, and a touchdown in a Mahomes/Reid offense. ‘Nuff said.
Carson Steele – Strong forward running style, out-touched Perine 2-1. Steele appears to be the back to own in this offense for now, but we’ll see what happens when Kareem Hunt is thrown into the mix.
Darnell Mooney – 8 Targets, multiple designed plays, including at the beginning of the game. There may be some FLEX or bye-week streaming appeal for the former Chicago Bear.

Two Down

Bijan Robinson – Robinson found the end zone but was otherwise inefficient with his touches. He took the ball on 4th down to try and convert deep in Chiefs territory but was completely stuffed to end the game. If this is how the line is going to block, more tough games are coming.
Xavier Worthy – Not on the same page as Mahomes on multiple occasions. Worthy appears to be your prototypical boom/bust player.

Kansas City Chiefs

Quarterback

Patrick Mahomes: 26/39, 217 Yards, 2 TD, 1 INT | 6 Rushes, 17 Yards

It’s another quiet game for Mahomes in the box score, though he was able to lead the Chiefs to victory once again. While quiet, he still found a way to force-feed his new favorite target, Rashee Rice. When your favorite guy to throw to is always open, and your run game and defense are playing great, getting a W throwing for 217 yards is easy. Mahomes also found ways to use his legs, including on a clutch scramble to earn a first down late in the game. If he can get on the same page with rookie Xavier Worthy, we might start to see some better stat lines.

Running Back

Carson Steele: 17 Rushes, 72 Yards, 2 Targets, 1 Catch, 2 Yards

In the undrafted rookie’s first game taking over for injured RB Isiah Pacheco, you could have almost mistaken Steele for his injured teammate. A similar strong straight-line running style and strong finishing to runs led to a successful showing for Steele. Steele also showed a solid ability in pass protection, but he wasn’t used as a receiver very often. He also took a wildcat snap on the goal line, showing that Andy Reid and company are willing to get creative with this rookie. If this is how his usage will look while Pacheco is out, he will be the RB to own in this offense.

Samaje Perine: 6 Rushes, 25 Yards | 4 Targets, 3 Catches, 15 Yards

Perine appears firmly entrenched as the Chief’s third-down back, with Isiah Pacheco out for the foreseeable future. When on the field, he’s a competent blocker and pass catcher and will continue to have a place in this offense moving forward. We’ll see what Perine’s role is when Kareem Hunt joins the fold shortly.

Wide Receiver/Tight End

Rashee Rice: 14 Targets, 12 Catches, 110 Yards, 1 TD, 1 Rush, 1 Yard

If you drafted Rashee Rice in your fantasy leagues, you’re very happy right now. It would appear we have found Patrick Mahomes’ new security blanket. Whether being used on quick slants or running down the sidelines, Rice is consistently open, and Mahomes is finding ways to feed him every opportunity he gets. He is getting tons of looks in every game and displaying excellent after-the-catch abilities. He’s a strong WR1 for the foreseeable future.

Travis Kelce: 5 Targets, 4 Catches, 30 Yards

Kelce once again has a quiet game. After having only 4 yards in the first half, the Chiefs appeared to want to get him involved early after the break, targeting him with the first play of the half and late again on the same drive. However, that did not last long, with Kelce receiving just one target after, which resulted in an incompletion. To the Falcons’ credit, Jessie Bates played great coverage on the veteran all night, forcing Kelce to drop a couple of passes he usually hauls in.

Xavier Worthy: 4 Targets, 2 Catches, 17 Yards, 3 Rushes, 13 Yards

It’s clear watching the game that Andy Reid wants to get Worthy involved in the offense, but the receiver’s timing with Patrick Mahomes is just barely off. This was highlighted on a play late in the game that saw a crossing Worthy sit down on his route while Mahomes threw the ball in front of his path. There’s potential for this dynamic rookie to become fantasy-viable, but he needs to show a more consistent ability for production before he can be trusted in a FLEX spot.

Juju Smith-Schuster: 3 Targets, 2 Catches, 17 Yards, 1 TD

While his night included a touchdown, the overall performance was quiet for the veteran. The touchdown came when WR Rashee Rice briefly left the game for injury, and Juju acquired 2 targets outside of that time. Juju should remain on waivers in your leagues.

Justin Watson: 2 Targets, 1 Catch, 13 Yards

Outside of Rashee Rice, the Chiefs passing game was silent for most of the night. This includes Watson, who was not seen on the field for most of the game.

Atlanta Falcons

Quarterback

Kirk Cousins: 20/29, 230 Yards, 1 TD, 1 Int

It was a very back-and-forth game for Kirk, who at times was delivering strikes with precision and quickness and at others was reminding folks of the player known for folding under the primetime lights. Kirk was harassed the entire game by the Chiefs’ pass rush and was unable to find much success throwing the ball down the field. Cousins looks better than he did earlier in the season when it was clear he was still bothered by his Achilles injury, but he still doesn’t quite meet that top-12 QB threshold that makes him a recommended start in 1QB leagues.

Running Back

Bijan Robinson: 16 Rushes, 31 Yards, 1 TD | 2 Targets, 2 Catches, 21 Yards

Much like Cousins and the rest of the Falcons offense, Robinson spent most of his night being tackled for minimal gains due to being contacted almost immediately by a Kansas City defender. The o-line looked weak, and linebacker Nick Bolton shut down Robinson on multiple occasions, including the Falcons’ final play of the game, a failed 4th and 1 rush by Robinson. Bijan showed good pass protection abilities and a strong burst after the catch but didn’t do much from a fantasy perspective outside of his touchdown. Better weeks are ahead for the dynamic RB.

Tyler Allgeier: 7 Rushes, 32 Yards

Allgeier was able to produce better than teammate Bijan Robinson on the ground, but his usage was minimal for most of the game. Seemingly only coming into the game on long drives, Allgeier was shut down by the Kansas City defense late in the game while attempting to convert a critical third and short situation. He’s a premier handcuff, but difficult to trust in your lineups right now.

Wide Receiver/Tight End

Drake London: 9 Targets, 6 Catches, 61 Yards, 1 TD

For the first three quarters, outside of his wide-open touchdown grab, you’d have thought Darnell Mooney was the WR1 on the Falcons. However, late in the game, that changed. London received 5 of his 9 targets in the 4th quarter, hauling in multiple first-down grabs to extend driver in an attempt to help his team win. On the final drive, London broke free of his defender down the sideline but was ultimately missed by QB Kirk Cousins, who underthrew the pass, leading to an incompletion on what could have been a 40+ yard TD.

Kyle Pitts: 5 Targets, 2 Catches, 59 Yards

An early 50-yard reception had many thinking this could be the game where Kyle Pitts shows out under the new Falcons offense. Unfortunately for many, that was not the case. Pitts went quiet after, only hauling in one more reception for 9 yards. While he was out there on seemingly every offensive snap for Atlanta, that hasn’t translated to production. Pitts also didn’t impress as a blocker in this game, losing his block on multiple occasions. We know the athletic ability is there for Pitts, but for whatever reason, we’re still waiting for that big breakout.

Darnell Mooney: 8 Targets, 8 Catches, 66 Yards

Mooney was very productive Sunday night, working in between zone coverage very well and showing off his speed well in route running. Mooney dominated Atlanta’s targets early, earning multiple in the screen game which show a great willingness from this coaching team to get him involved. He didn’t show much elusiveness with the ball in his hands but was able to get open in zone coverage and help the Falcons move the ball downfield.

Ray-Ray McCloud III: 3 Targets, 2 Catches, 17 Yards | 1 Rush, 20 Yards

McCloud is running a high percentage of snaps in this Atlanta offense, and Sunday night was no different. In his limited opportunities, McCloud showed off tremendous speed, almost scoring a touchdown on a run if not for the deep safety barely forcing him out of bounds.

Notes