On the same night the New England Patriots hoisted the Vince Lombardi trophy, flaunted their fifth championship ring and put the infamous 28-3 with 2:12 left in the third quarter in the Super Bowl back on the scoreboard, the Patriots got utterly embarrassed by the Kansas City Chiefs on their home turf, 42-27.
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It only took two minutes and 52 seconds for the Patriots to storm down the field and take the lead. Kareem Hunt fumbled on his first carry. Everything seemed to be falling into place for a magical opening night in Foxborough. Then suddenly it wasn't, and the Patriots were left with questions of their own.
How had they allowed Hunt to run for 148 yards, catch passes for 98 yards through the air and set an NFL record 246 yards as the most yards from scrimmage in a debut. The Patriots defense allowed more than 500 yards, the most in Bill Belichick's tenure. They allowed 42 points, the most by a Patriots defense since 1993.
It was pretty simple for the Chiefs, who answered with a touchdown pass before the end of the first quarter and only trailed the Patriots by three heading into the half.
Alex Smith tore the Patriots defense apart coming out of the break. Tyreek Hill took a Smith pass 75 yards for a score. Patriots running back Mike Gillislee kept New England in it until the fourth quarter.
In that final frame, it was all Smith and Hunt. A 78-yard bomb to Hunt from Smith added one score, a four-yard run from Hunt added another and Charcandrick West jogged 21 yards for a third, putting Kansas City up 42-27 to close the night out.
The Chiefs were dominant, with Smith completing 28-of-35 passes for 268 yards, four scores and zero turnovers. The defense knocked around Brady, sacking him three times.
Touchdown Tom missed Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola was injured early and the offense looked out of sync after such a hot start. Eric Berry, who was injured late, kept Rob Gronkowski in check. Brandin Cooks had 88 yards on three receptions, but it just wasn't enough.
If one thing is for sure this season, it's the Patriots won't go 16-0, despite all the talk of how stacked their team is. They'll fight for every win and no team will roll over. Kansas City has set the tone for the season. The Patriots are in for a war.
