It’s been hard to find much fault with the Kansas City Chiefs so far this season. After all, the two-time Super Bowl champions are the only undefeated team in the NFL. Despite this, there were many “experts” expressing doubts about the Chiefs this season due to Patrick Mahomes not playing at his usual high level. But that wasn’t the case on Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders.

We could argue all day about how fair it is to say Mahomes hasn’t played well in the Chiefs’ first six games. He certainly wasn’t putting up the kind of numbers we’re used to and entered the game on Sunday having allowed just 6 goals. Up to 8 interventions. However, Mahomes consistently excelled when needed and found a way to help KC put away wins.

If there are people trying to convince themselves that Mahomes is no longer the same elite quarterback, his play against the Raiders didn’t help their cause. He went 27-38 (71% completion) for 262 yards with 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. This interception came on a pass deflection and was not a bad play by Mahomes. He also rushed for 17 yards and picked up several key first downs in the process.

The Raiders are currently 2-6 and not an elite team, but they always seem to play hard against the Chiefs no matter the circumstances. I mentioned before the game that this could be a trap game for the Chiefs.and it certainly looked that way at times, but it wasn’t because of anything Mahomes did. Despite the Raiders’ best effort, Mahomes looked like the quarterback we watched win the last two Super Bowls; someone who is calm and in complete control of the game.

Newly acquired DeAndre Hopkins played some in this game, but he definitely wasn’t up to speed. Hopkins seemed like a natural fit for the Chiefsso things will only get better when “all systems go” for this offense. mahomes He managed to get a classic performance from Travis Kelce on National Tight Ends Day. Kelce’s 10 receptions for 90 yards and a touchdown were by far his best outing of the year.

If Mahomes plays the way he did Sunday and gets consistent performance from Hopkins and Kelce, his numbers will increase from there. Also, production from Hopkins and Kelce should open things up even more for people like Xavier Worthy and Noah Gray, who continue to do a nice job contributing here and there. The only potential concern with this crime is that everyone else stays healthy and questions they have on the left.

Even though Mahomes’ numbers haven’t increased by much, his “bad play” is greatly exaggerated due to the high bar he has set for himself. He currently has a 68.4% completion percentage (which would be a career-best), and while his 7.3 yards per attempt is below his career average, it’s already better than the 7.0 yards he posted last season. He also has 4,000-yard field goal speed. While that’s a long way from his career-high of 5,250, if you listen to the national narrative of how KC won with its defense and running game, you’d think those yardage numbers would be well shy of 4,000.

If you want a single statistic that shows how well Mahomes is playing, look at Kansas City’s third-down conversion numbers. The Chiefs converted 12 of 16 third downs against the Raiders. If you combine that with their 8 of 14 third downs against the San Francisco 49ers last week, they have a 20 of 30 third down overall since their bye week. Converting two-thirds of your third downs is great. If the Chiefs can manage to stay at anything close to this level, they will be incredibly difficult to beat, especially with their defence.

Patrick Mahomes may not be having the best statistical year of his career, but no one in the Chiefs Kingdom is complaining as the Chiefs are 7-0 and having one of their best games of the year. If his critics want to continue to “poke the bear” and take shots at him because of his overall stat sheet, they are setting themselves up for disappointment. The Mahomes we saw Sunday looked ready to compete for a third straight Super Bowl, and if the addition of DeAndre Hopkins works and the left tackle situation calms down, the rest of the NFL should be scared.A lot scared.