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The Kansas City Chiefs remain the NFL's final undefeated team at 7-0 for at least another week.
Patrick Mahomes completed 27-of-38 passes for 262 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, as the Chiefs defeated the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 8. DeAndre Hopkins' Chiefs career starts with a victory, as the 12-year veteran hauled in two of his three targets for 29 yards, and Mahomes could not be happier to have the All-Pro wideout in the offense going forward.
Mahomes said that Hopkins displayed “high-level stuff” in his first outing with the Chiefs. He mentioned one particular play when Hopkins shifted the outlook of the offense's opening drive when he converted a third down, per Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk and NBC Sports.
“For this down, in that situation, for him to run it and be in the right position, it shows that he’s gonna fit in perfectly in this offense,” Mahomes said, via Jesse Newell of the Kansas City Star.
Hopkins is already looking comfortable playing alongside Mahomes, and he understands what's going to be expected of him moving forward when the offense is in need of a big-time play.
DeAndre Hopkins delivers in Chiefs debut
While Hopkins didn't totally light up the box score with his numbers in Week 8, the Chiefs saw all they needed to see out of the 32-year-old Pro Bowler. His limited snap count was expected, as he just arrived to Kansas City less than a week ago. But he did a great job at creating space on both of his receptions, and his 14.5 YPC was a small preview of what is to come.
Mahomes, by his standards, isn't having a quality season. He's thrown an interception in each of his appearances, and has just one 300-yard passing game. Now that Hopkins has the initial nerves out of the way with his new offense, there should be something unique to build off of between him and Mahomes. At the very least, Hopkins' presence is going to open up plays for other pass-catching weapons.
Travis Kelce benefitted from having another huge target for defenses to focus on, as the veteran tight end caught 10 passes for 90 yards and one touchdown. It's likely that Hopkins has some bigger performances ahead, as he's an expert in man-to-man coverage and can leap over defenders on red zone opportunities.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers look to challenge the unbeaten Chiefs in Week 9, and it'll be interesting to see how Hopkins performs with extra practice reps under his belt.
