Report card: Chiefs get quality marks across the board in win over Jacksonville

Key plays, stats and grades from the Chiefs’ 30-14 win against the Jacksonville Jaguars on on Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs improved to 5-0 with the victory.

The recap

Player of the game: Outside linebacker Dee Ford recorded a sack and three quarterback hurries, forced a fumble and made five tackles before being getting ejected for standing over Blake Bortles on the sideline after Bortles had been knocked out of bounds.

Reason to hope: The Chiefs’ defense responded after weeks of criticism and questions about its viability. They held the Jaguars scoreless in the first half and intercepted a pair of passes and returning one for a touchdown when Chris Jones snatched a Blake Bortles screen pass and returned it 20 yards. They forced a total of five turnovers and allowed just 14 points.

Reason to mope: Health. The Chiefs came into the game without starting safety Eric Berry, and they came away with potentially several more key contributors banged up. Eric Murray (groin) and Justin Houston (hamstring) left the game and did not return, and Armani Watts (ankle) also left the game. Starting right guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif suffered a fractured bone in his lower leg and will miss some time.

Looking ahead: The Chiefs will take the show on the road again, this time playing the defending AFC champions and perennial conference power the New England Patriots on Sunday Night Football in Massachusetts.

Report card

Rushing offense: B. The Chiefs went to the ground game primarily in the second half, when they led by as many as 23 points. They rushed for 82 of their 126 rushing yards after halftime, and they controlled overall time of possession in the game. Kareem Hunt rushed 22 times for 87 yards (4.0 yards per carry) and a touchdown. The ground game produced two runs of 20 yards or more.

Passing offense: B-. Patrick Mahomes continued to spread the ball around — he connected with five receivers on the opening drive of the game — and exploit weaknesses in the defense and mismatches. He became just the second quarterback since the start of the 2017 season to throw for 300 yards or more against that defense. However, for the first time this season he also threw the ball to the other team. The Jaguars picked him off twice during the game.

Rushing defense: C. This was a game where the Chiefs’ defense did enough against the run early, despite giving up an average of 5.9 yards per carry, to keep the Jaguars from dominating possession and play keep away from the Chiefs’ offense. Once the Jaguars fell behind, their running attack basically became an afterthought. They rushed for just 30 yards in the second half.

Passing defense: B-. The Chiefs did give up some big gains through the air while trying to master the bend-but-don’t-break approach, but they also intercepted two passes. The pass rush sacked Bortles five and hurried him 11 times. Meanwhile, the pass defense held up at a crucial point early in the game on a goal-line stand in the first half when the Jaguars went to the air on third-and-1 as well as fourth-and-1. The Jaguars threw for 430 yards, but they also attempted 61 passes and had just one touchdown compared to four interceptions for the Chiefs’ defense.

Special teams: C+. The Chiefs fell victim to an fourth-quarter onside kick, which didn’t end up making a difference in the outcome but did make this game closer than it needed to be late. Tyreek Hill didn’t have a big punt return, but for the most part he made good decisions on catches in order to save yardage and keep the Chiefs’ offense from being backed up in its own end. The one time they forced the Jaguars to return a kickoff after a penalty, they covered well and pinned the offense deep.

Coaching: B-. Despite injuries on defense that greatly tested their depth at outside linebacker and in the secondary, the defense rose to the occasion. The Chiefs forced Blake Bortles into mistakes and kept him from making big plays with his legs, which is one of his strengths. Patrick Mahomes and the offense managed the game well and were measured in the shots they took against a talent-laden Jaguars secondary. Their failure to reign in some of their after-the-whistle antics led to multiple ejections