Kenneth Walker III had a spectacular debut with the Chiefs that overshadowed Patrick Mahomes' return

The Kansas City Chiefs celebrated Patrick Mahomes' return with a resounding 31-10 victory over the Denver Broncos. The quarterback once again proved he's ready to lead the team, but the star of the night was another player: Kenneth Walker III.

The running back had the debut the Kansas City Chiefs were hoping for when they drafted him. His performance was extraordinary. Walker finished with 173 yards on 23 carries and two touchdowns—one on the ground and one on a reception. He also added 18 yards on three receptions for a total of 191 yards. It was his best rushing performance in an NFL game.

Mahomes' return had another star player

Walker made his presence felt right from the first drive . On seven carries, he gained 32 yards and helped move the chains as Kansas City began to build its lead. Mahomes also made an impact from the start: after a first touchdown run was nullified by a penalty, the quarterback ran again and scored a 15-yard touchdown.

The running back had already shown in Seattle that one of his greatest strengths is breaking through tackles and gaining yards after contact. He forced 61 missed tackles in 2025 and racked up more than 600 yards after contact. He also had 33 runs for double-digit yards, 10 of which were for more than 20 yards . The Chiefs had only three runs of more than 20 yards all of the previous season.

The most important play came at the start of the third quarter. On fourth down and one yard to go, Walker found an opening on the left side and ran 60 yards into the end zone. He finished with 191 yards from the line of scrimmage—more than the 176 total yards Denver gained throughout the entire game.

After that run, Walker helped seal the game early in the fourth quarter when the Chiefs pulled off a brilliant trick play.

The Chiefs ran a trick play in which Justin Fields handed the ball off to the running back, who went on to score his second touchdown of the night. The play allowed Kansas City to extend its lead even further and essentially seal the game.

Kansas City Chiefs running back Kenneth Walker III signed a three-year, $43.05 million contract with the team after winning the Super Bowl MVP award, and he has added a new dimension to the Chiefs' offense that they haven't had in several years.

Mahomes Wins Again, and the Chiefs Find a New Weapon

Mahomes' return turned out to be a success , both in terms of the result and how his knee felt.

Kansas City secured a decisive victory over one of its main rivals in the AFC West and, at the same time, found in Walker a player capable of shouldering much of the offensive load.

Mahomes didn't need to put on a spectacular performance for the Chiefs to dominate the game. Walker made the difference on the ground, the defense held Denver to 176 total yards, and Kansas City closed out the game with a clear 31-10 lead.

The season has barely begun, but Walker's debut sent a clear message: if he keeps playing at this level , the Chiefs will have a player capable of complementing Mahomes and making their offense much harder to defend against.