Chargers brought more energy in win over Chiefs, Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes admit

The Los Angeles Chargers fired out of a cannon to start the season, beating the Kansas City Chiefs 27-21 in Brazil while Justin Herbert threw for 318 yards and three scores and ran for 32 more yards on the ground. 

There’s much to discuss coming out of the game in which the Chargers ended years of suffering against the Chiefs. 

But first? The obvious: The Chargers were just more fired up to play and it showed on almost every single snap. 

“The first half we were off a bit, and then the second half it picked up a bit,” Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said, per PFT’s Michael David Smith. “I’ve got to make sure that we start faster. . . . I’ve got to make sure that we come out with better emotion. . . . I thought they did a better job in that area.”

Patrick Mahomes added that “if you don’t come out with the right mindset, you get beat. The Chargers came out with the right mindset, and they beat us.”

So, hats off to Jim Harbaugh, who remains undefeated in Week 1 of NFL seasons. Last year, the Chargers stole some easy matchups against Las Vegas and Carolina to start the year, only to drop two in a row after. 

This time? The Chargers needed the quick start before they go play two more AFC West opponents in Las Vegas and Denver. If Friday was a sign of things to come, Herbert and Co. will keep buying deeply into whatever Harbaugh’s selling.