KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chiefs coach Andy Reid watched the Buccaneers drive down the field in the final minute of regulation, and Baker Mayfield threw a touchdown pass that put Tampa Bay within a 2 conversion points to end Kansas City’s perfect game. start of the season.

Bucs coach Todd Bowles admitted he gave “very little” thought to going 2 before kicking the extra point that sent the game into overtime.

“I’m glad he didn’t,” Reid said with a smile.

That’s because the Chiefs won the ensuing coin toss and Patrick Mahomes capped a big day… 291 passing yards and three touchdowns on a lame ankle – going 5 for 5 on overtime training alone. Kareem Hunt finished it off, along with his 106-yard rushing performance, by diving into the end zone from 2 yards out to give Kansas City a 30-24 victory Monday night.

“Everyone got a piece of it,” Reid said.

DeAndre Hopkins had eight catches for 86 yards and two touchdowns. Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with Taylor Swift watches from a suite. And a defense missing a few key players due to injuries limited Mayfield to 200 passing yards and two touchdowns, and ended a Tampa Bay running game that managed just 95 yards.

The result was familiar: The Chiefs won their 14th straight since last season, the longest streak since Carolina started 14-0 in 2014, and they became just the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season. They also won their last eight games while trailing in the second half, including the playoffs.

The Buccaneers had their chance when Mayfield hit Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds left. But rather than go for the win, Bowles decided to kick an extra point — and Bucs ended up losing for the fourth time in five games.

“We have guys that are not going to stop fighting until the end,” Tampa Bay receiver Sterling Shepard said. “I’m really proud of the group and the way everyone fought. We just need to clean up a few things. And that’s what this league is for.

It was a memorable first half for two players waiting to play at Arrowhead Stadium.

The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough Kansas City neighborhood, but her family could never buy her a ticket to a game. He ended up taking a circuitous route through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a junior college in California to Arizona State, where he eventually became a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the draft. 2022.

Two years later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and into the end zone. He punctuated his 7 yard run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, nearly throwing the ball all the way to the second deck.

“I can’t even count right now,” White said when asked how many friends and family members were watching from those stands.

Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City after a trade with the Titans.

The three-time All-Pro, who had already caught four passes by that point, scooped up a third-down throw from Mahomes in the middle of triple coverage for a 35-yard gain that put the Chiefs inside the Tampa Bay 5. Three plays later, Mahomes found it in the back of the end zone and Hopkins celebrated his first touchdown with the Chiefs with a dance of “Remember the Titans.”

“It’s one of my favorite films,” he said. “I knew if I got in the end zone, I would remember the Titans.”

Tampa Bay tried to take control with back-to-back goals to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the last tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.

The Chiefs responded in the fourth quarter, however. Mahomes marched them in the pouring rain 70 yards for the game-tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and twisting his left ankle, then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-1 Buccaneers goal 5 to give Kansas. City in the lead.

Mahomes later said the ankle injury scared him more than hurt. He was checked in the sideline tent, but he quickly started throwing balls again in an effort to stay loose, and he never gave Reid a chance to take him out of the game.

“You feel the pain and it scares you,” Mahomes said, “because I’ve dealt with ankles before. But I just laid there and over time the pain got less. I got there just got there, started moving again and felt comfortable going.

Tampa Bay quickly scored three points after Kansas City took the lead, but its defense got the ball back immediately, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down the field. He capped the drive with a touchdown to Miller – his first career TD catch – with 27 seconds left, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.

It ended up being a decision the Buccaneers would regret.

Injuries

Buccaneers: LB Yaya Diaby (chest) briefly left the game. CB Josh Hayes (calf) suffered cramps in the second half.

Chiefs: WR Mecole Hardman (shoulder) and DE George Karlaftis (hip) were injured but returned to the game.

To be continued

Tampa Bay hosts San Francisco on Sunday.

Kansas City hosts Denver on Sunday.

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