SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Patrick Mahomes threw three touchdown passes and 423 passing yards as the Kansas City Chiefs erased a huge deficit to defeat the San Francisco 49ers 44-23 on Sunday.
Mahomes had a rocky start to the Super Bowl replay game. A pass intercepted in the first quarter increased the delay of the Chiefs (5-2) to 10-0.
That wasn’t a problem, however, as he led the Chiefs to majors on six of the next seven possessions.
Mecole Hardman scored two majors on runs and another on an eight-yard catch. Justin Watson, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Clyde Edwards-Helaire also scored touchdowns.
The comeback took the Chiefs to 13-9 when Mahomes and his troopers trailed by at least 10 points. The most memorable being the Super Bowl victory against the 49ers (3-4) after the 2019 season.
The 49ers have lost back-to-back games despite adding running back Christian McCaffrey this week, who had 62 yards on his San Francisco debut.
Ray-Ray McCloud III and George Kittle caught touchdown passes for the 49ers.
The 49ers added three field goals to that tally and squandered another scoring opportunity when Jimmy Garoppolo threw an interception on the end zone line late in the first half.
The Chiefs took control of the situation with two straight touchdowns to start the second half.
Shy beginnings for McCaffrey
McCaffrey was made into uniform just two days after the San Francisco 49ers acquired his services from the Carolina Panthers.
The 49ers gave up four draft picks on Thursday night to get their hands on the versatile running back. The next day, McCaffrey joined his new organization and passed his medicals after flying from one end of the United States to the other.
He took a crash course to master the 49ers playbook, and he learned enough to be able to put on the uniform.
The 26-year-old McCaffrey is known for his running skills but is also good at catching passes and making blocks to protect the quarterback.
The 49ers want him to provide a spark for an offense that has struggled to find its rhythm so far this season.