5 things we learned from the Chiefs’ thrilling overtime victory

In Week 9's "Monday Night Football" matchup on GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers went into overtime as they battled through what might have been the Chiefs' most entertaining game of the season.

Kansas City's defense uncharacteristically failed to get a stop in the final minutes of regulation, while other miscues left the door open for Tampa Bay to tie the game.

Still, the Chiefs did quite a few more good things than bad ones. In overtime, quarterback Patrick Mahomes was able to methodically move the team down the field to score the game-winning touchdown, allowing Kansas City to remain undefeated with a 30-24 victory.

Here are five things we learned.

It's not just because he caught a pair of touchdown passes from Mahomes. It's also how he caught them — and how he set them up.

In the second quarter — trailing 7-3 — Mahomes had multiple pass rushers in his face. But he still threw a perfect pass downfield over numerous Tampa defenders.

It was a throw-and-catch that only a select few in the world could actually make. In one of his two touchdown receptions, Hopkins made another nice contested catch.

It's not just that Hopkins is savvy, knowing when and where he should be. It's also that he's elite at the catch point — with vise grips for hands. Mahomes has never had a player quite like him before.

Rashee Rice is awesome for what he is: a freight train moving downhill. But while Hopkins is not as physically strong as Rice, he's a human pogo stick who is simply allergic to dropping passes.

In the first half, the Kansas City offensive line was struggling to keep Mahomes upright. Tampa Bay's interior pass rush was having its way at the line of scrimmage; it collected four sacks before halftime. So in the second half, the Chiefs countered the Buccaneers' aggression by running the ball down their throats.

Hunt more than did his part. He fought for every yard — and at times, looked borderline explosive. Down the stretch (and in overtime), he was Kansas City's go-to player to keep the ball moving and punch the ball into the end zone.

Hunt has proven that he is still a workhorse in this league.

The rain was probably part of the reason the Chiefs ran the ball so effectively in the second half. But for large stretches of the game, the Kansas City defense was getting home (and hitting the quarterback) while rushing only four players.

Meanwhile, the Chiefs' offensive line sometimes looked really ugly; Mahomes took more hits than we would like to see. Just the same, Kansas City was able to impose its will at the point of attack, opening up running lanes through which Hunt could move the ball.

It wasn't always pretty — but the Chiefs got the job done.

With the clock ticking down on a third-and-11 in the fourth quarter, Mahomes scrambled out of the pocket, floating a screen pass to running back Samaje Perine — who dropped the ball. This allowed the Buccaneers to save one of their timeouts and preserve the two-minute warning.

On a second-and-1 with 19 seconds left in the game, tight end Travis Kelce allowed a would-be first-down to slip through his fingers — and also gave up a fumble with just over a minute left in the first half.

Thankfully, the Chiefs were able to overcome these errors, keeping their undefeated streak alive.

Kansas City fans have had to endure plenty of injuries this season. So when wide receiver Mecole Hardman went down with a shoulder injury after a long first-quarter punt return, I was a little bit annoyed that yet another player could be missing time — but thankfully, Hardman returned to the field after only a short absence.

Then things got worse. On the same third-quarter play, defensive end George Karlaftis and defensive tackle Tershawn Wharton were both shaken up — but again, both were able to return.

And then things went a little too far. While flipping a touchdown pass to Perine as the fourth quarter began, Mahomes aggravated the rolled ankle he suffered against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 8. For a few minutes, it looked like he might not return.

Our stomachs were twisted in knots — but luckily, these feelings didn't last very long. Mahomes was back on the very next drive.