Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes shook off a late injury scare as his side won 30-24 in overtime against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to continue their unbeaten start to the season.
Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns without an interception while running back Kareem Hunt claimed a two-yard game-winning touchdown to take the Chiefs, playing at home, to 8-0.
Mahomes, a three-time Super Bowl winner, had rolled his ankle in a win over the Las Vegas Raiders last week and was left limping again after escaping pressure to send a touchdown pass to Samaje Perine that pulled the Chiefs level at 17-17 early in the fourth quarter.
The 29-year-old needed help to get to the sideline, but after treatment he returned to hit DeAndre Hopkins with a five-yard touchdown pass that put the reigning Super Bowl champions 24-17 up with four minutes and 17 seconds remaining.
Tampa Bay responded when quarterback Baker Mayfield controlled the game, leading to a touchdown from Ryan Miller and when the Bucs opted not to go for a two-point conversion and the lead, the extra-point kick tied it at 24-24.
Kansas City’s final drive in regulation failed to yield anything, but they got the ball to start overtime with Mahomes guiding them to the game-winning score as the Bucs suffered a fourth defeat in their past five games.
Mahomes downplayed his ankle injury after the game, saying he expected to be ready when the Chiefs host the Denver Broncos on Sunday.
“You always fear the worst,” he said. “But as I got some time it started feeling better. We’ve got a short week, but we’ll rehab it up and I’ll be ready to go next week.”