Rookie Drew Mukuba helps the Eagles pull off another win over the Chiefs for a 2-0 start

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Eagles rookie safety Drew Mukuba couldn’t have picked a better time for his first regular-season interception.

The Kansas City Chiefs were looking for the go-ahead touchdown early in the fourth quarter, but Mukuba was in the perfect position to snag Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce’s dropped pass 1 yard shy of the goal line. His play helped the Eagles protect a narrow lead, and they ultimately won, 20-17, on Sunday.

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Mukuba filled the stat sheet in his second career game and finished with the interception, a half-sack, a tackle for a loss, and six tackles.

The Eagles now have won three straight contests against Kansas City. Here’s our instant analysis from Philadelphia’s second consecutive win of the season:

The Eagles offense had an up-and-down day, especially in the passing game. Hurts finished with 15 completions on 22 attempts (68.2%) for 101 yards. He did not have a passing touchdown for a second straight week. Hurts also had nine carries for 15 yards, including a Tush Push touchdown.

After gaining just 9 yards through the first nine plays of the game on two possessions, the Eagles finally got on the board in the third. Late in the first quarter on first-and-10 from the Kansas City 13-yard line, Saquon Barkley took advantage of sound blocking up front and dashed into the end zone untouched to put the Eagles up, 7-0.

Barkley fared better against the Chiefs than he did in Week 1 vs. the Cowboys, rushing for 88 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries.

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Hurts didn’t take many chances deep for a second straight game. His longest completion of the first half was a 13-yard screen pass to DeVonta Smith on the Barkley touchdown drive in which the receiver generated 17 yards after the catch.

Things didn’t improve to start the second half. The Eagles defense gave its offense a gift when it forced a turnover on downs at the Chiefs’ own 35. Mukuba stuffed Marquise “Hollywood” Brown on a third-and-1 pass for no gain. The Chiefs went for it on fourth down on a split inside zone run, but Nolan Smith sniffed it out, blowing up ballcarrier Kareem Hunt in the backfield for a loss of a yard.

But the Eagles couldn’t find the end zone. After two Barkley carries for 1 yard apiece, Hurts was blitzed on third down. He chucked up a desperation heave for Smith, but it was thrown too high for the 26-year-old receiver.

After Mukuba’s interception and 41-yard return, the Eagles offense began to get into a rhythm. Hurts completed a 28-yard pass to Smith while facing a zero blitz to bring the Eagles to the Chiefs’ 3-yard line. Smith made a slight adjustment on the vertical route, turning around and boxing out Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie to snare the ball. Later in the drive, a second-try Tush Push touchdown put the Eagles up, 20-10.

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“When you come into the game, there’s a level of patience you have to have,” Hurts said postgame. “You’ve got to take what they give you while being the aggressor and playing with aggression. I think we were not as patient as we could’ve been earlier in the game.

“But I think in the second half, we let things come to us, and we played with great instinct. Smitty was ready for the adjustment and we made a big-time play.”

Jake Elliott also came up big, nailing a pair of field goals from 50-plus yards (one from 58 yards and another from 51).

Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was down his top two receivers in Rashee Rice, who is suspended for the first six games of the season, and Xavier Worthy, who was injured in the season opener against the Los Angeles Chargers.

His lack of receiving options was noticeable, especially in the first half. The three-time Super Bowl champion completed just six passes on 11 attempts for 51 yards before halftime. Kelce was his most effective target. He had two catches for 34 yards, including an 18-yarder on fourth down with Mukuba trailing in his wake. That 18-yard pass was Mahomes’ longest of the first half.

But Mahomes was dangerous with his legs. Whenever the Eagles vacated the middle of the field, Mahomes made them pay. He scrambled five times for 60 yards and a touchdown in the first half alone, just 3 yards shy of his single-game career-high rushing total (63 yards and a touchdown on six carries against the Tennessee Titans in 2022). He added two more carries for 6 yards in the second half.

His final scramble of the first half was the most significant. On first-and-10 from the Eagles’ 13-yard line, defensive tackle Jalen Carter got into the backfield on a stunt but fell to the ground, allowing Mahomes to dash down the right sideline for a touchdown to give the Chiefs a 10-7 lead.

Mahomes got cooking late in the third quarter, completing a 23-yard pass to Kelce on a crosser, but he was thwarted by Mukuba’s interception later in the drive. The Chiefs quarterback wasn’t discouraged. His 49-yard bomb to a wide-open Tyquan Thornton with three minutes remaining in regulation pulled the Chiefs within three points. Still, they fell short of pulling off a comeback.

“I’m not saying anything everybody in the NFL doesn’t already know: [Mahomes is] a really freaking good football player, and Kelce, man, still really, really good football player that he goes to in critical moments,” said coach Nick Sirianni. “They’ve got a good offensive line. That was a tough matchup, and really proud of our defense to find a way to turn the ball over.”

In an effort to add reinforcements to the Eagles’ pass rush, general manager Howie Roseman signed veteran edge rusher Za’Darius Smith the day after the season-opening win over the Dallas Cowboys.

Smith made an impact in the first half. Early in the second quarter on third-and-8, Vic Fangio called a delayed safety blitz, allowing Mukuba to rush the B gap unscathed. In the backfield, the rookie safety teamed up for a sack of Mahomes with Smith, who beat left tackle Josh Simmons outside off the edge.

But Smith wasn’t just effective as a pass rusher. He also made some plays against the run, posting one tackle for loss and another at the line of scrimmage for no gain. He finished the afternoon with four total tackles and the half-sack.

In the fourth quarter, defensive tackle Jordan Davis chased Mahomes out of bounds and pulled up lame with a cramp. He jogged off the field and went back to the locker room.