KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid was trying to get to his postgame news conference, but he wasn’t going to make it there without walking past receiver Rashee Rice in the team’s locker room.
Reid stopped, then smiled. Rice’s beaming expression was enough to affect the coach’s emotions as well.
“I just love this,” Rice said. “You gotta love this, Coach.”
This was the scene in a celebratory Chiefs locker room after Monday night’s 28-7 home victory over the Washington Commanders — and a moment accurately encapsulating the vibe of the hottest team in the NFL.
The numbers are impressive on their own. Kansas City scored at least 28 points for a fifth consecutive game. The Chiefs also held an opponent to a touchdown or less for the second straight time.
All of that, though, is just a footnote compared with what’s going on around the team following its latest blowout victory over an overmatched opponent.
Rice and Reid’s postgame interaction? It was only one example of a team that has thrived while sharing the love.
Take Rice as an example. A few minutes later, he was about to take his turn in the interview room when he stopped and made an abrupt U-turn. After leaving the room, he came back in again, this time with a red “Throne Sport Coffee” can in hand.
You know, the same brand whose lead investor is Rice’s quarterback with the Chiefs, Patrick Mahomes.
Rice set the drink on the lectern to publicly support his QB.
“Sorry, guys,” he told reporters with a smile. “I need my boost.”
Linebacker Nick Bolton, meanwhile, was asked what has impressed him most about the offense, and he began with a tangent.
This doesn’t always happen during seasons, he said, but the defense has begun to feed off the offense’s energy. So much so, Bolton said, that now he sees defensive players celebrating their best work by using gestures made popular by the team’s offensive guys.
On Monday? That meant defensive tackle Chris Jones finishing off one play while pretending to scoop food toward his face. That was a reference to the Chiefs receivers’ “Everybody’s Gotta Eat” mantra and post-play gyrations.
“Just the love they have for each other, rooting each other on, not worrying about who gets the ball, who gets the shine,” Bolton said. “It’s about getting the win at the end of the day. (The receivers) are embodying that, and players on the defensive side as well. And it’s just a fun thing to watch.”
It raises a question that might seem silly on the surface but may not be upon further reflection.
Is it possible that the Chiefs are having more fun this season — through a 5-3 start — than they did even a year ago when they grinded their way to a 15-2 regular-season mark on their way to a Super Bowl appearance?
There’s certainly a case to be made.
For one, the offense last season never rolled like this. Mahomes, in particular, was at his best in the chaos on Monday, thriving in scramble-mode situations while consistently finding open teammates who were more than willing to freelance with him.
NFL’s Next Gen Stats accurately told that story. When he had more than four seconds to throw against the Commanders, Mahomes was 8-for-9 for 149 yards, with all three of his touchdown passes coming in that situation.
In addition, Mahomes scrambled on a season-high 28 percent of his dropbacks, with those plays producing 31 rushing yards and 4-of-6 passing for 52 yards.
“We have a good feel,” Mahomes said, “of finding those open places.”
At the start of the second half, the Chiefs offense also began to display the type of invincibility that resembled Mahomes’ first year as a starter in 2018.
The Chiefs scored touchdowns on each of their first three second-half possessions, including one 94-yard march in which the team also made up 25 additional yards in penalties.
Mahomes said the team never wavered when facing those speed bumps. In fact, during that entire 119-yard sequence, the Chiefs made it to third down just once.
“That’s kind of the mindset I had early in my career, is that the penalties weren’t going to affect us,” Mahomes said. “We were going to go out there and score no matter what.”
It’s such a contrast from last season.
The Chiefs seemed to keep every game close back then, always finding a way to make the biggest play. K.C. went 12-0 in one-score games, seemingly always doing just enough to keep its record pristine.
This place is LOUD!#ForTheCelly | @BudLight pic.twitter.com/Qs57gaFh0o
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) October 28, 2025
This year’s version doesn’t share the same qualities.
The Chiefs already have five double-digit victories. They’ve run through the Lions, Raiders and Commanders in a row at home, improving to 5-3 while quickly elevating themselves to betting favorites to win Super Bowl LX.
“I know our record’s not as good (as last year),” Mahomes said, “but it’s a lot more fun when everybody’s going out there and making stuff happen.”
No one’s feeling better about it all than Rice.
The Chiefs receiver, who had nine catches for 93 yards with a touchdown on Monday, was playing in just his second outing this year after a six-game NFL suspension. It’s been a long wait for him to return, but he said the feeling around the team now was “almost unexplainable.”
“I’m kind of going off everybody else’s energy right now,” Rice said. “The full energy cycle in that locker room is crazy.”
That cohesion will be tested next week. K.C. travels to Buffalo for the most challenging game left on its regular-season schedule in a matchup that could go a long way toward determining top seeding in the AFC playoff race.
All the Chiefs know? They’re feeding off each other in a way that feels different from past iterations.
“Just having some energy, having some fun. Just getting the joy back,” Bolton said. “I think we play our best when we do that.”
