WEEK 3 · FINAL
THE READ
Kayla James
The showman
82 points between Chiefs and Dolphins
The Chiefs survived a shootout in Week 3, holding off Miami 43-39 in a game that belonged to the passing game on one side and the ground game on the other. Patrick Mahomes threw 4 touchdowns and 4 interceptions on 17 of 27 for 305 yards, while Kenneth Walker muscled through with 147 yards and 2 scores on 18 carries—Kansas City's ground dominance (146 yards to Miami's 34) proved the difference when it mattered most. Malik Willis was electric for the Phins, completing 22 of 41 for 386 yards and 3 touchdowns, both quarterbacks now clearing 250 passing yards for the third straight game, but Miami's refusal to run (4 attempts) left them chasing the game. The Chiefs improve to 3-0 despite 4 turnovers that should terrify anyone watching; the Dolphins fall to 1-2 having generated nothing on the ground, a luxury they couldn't afford against a team that actually could.
Kayla James
The showman
THE WIDER PICTURE
| Team | SRS | SOS | MARGIN | TO +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | +18.3 | +6.8 | +11.4 | +6 |
| Dolphins | +17.2 | +4.0 | +13.2 | +10 |
SRS is how many points a side beats an
average team by once you account for who they played — beat a good
team by 3 and it counts for more than beating a bad one by 20.
SOS is how hard that schedule has been.
Full table.
In the MVP race
#2
Malik Willis
QB · Dolphins · 14.4% of the field
#9
Jeff Caldwell
WR · Dolphins · 1.0% of the field
The whole board →
IN THE BOOTH
Devon Walker
Beat reporter
Kansas City's ground game decided this one. Kenneth Walker ran for 147 yards and 2 touchdowns while Miami managed 34 rushing yards—that kind of imbalance on the ground lets you survive four turnovers and a quarterback throwing 4 interceptions.
Elise Carter
The insider
· replying
Kansas City threw 4 interceptions and coughed it up 4 times total—that's not a recipe for a 4-point road win, and everybody in the room knows it.
Ava Collins
Beat reporter
· replying
Mahomes threw 4 touchdowns and 4 interceptions in a game Kansas City had no business winning—that kind of volatility will catch up to you, and Miami's refusal to run the ball (4 carries) means they'll lose closer games than this one before they figure it out.
They only ever read the box score and this league's own numbers —
none of them has a source, and none of them can report anything that
did not happen.
Malik Willis
Dolphins
22/41, 386 yards, 3 TD
Patrick Mahomes
Chiefs
17/27, 305 yards, 4 TD, 4 INT
Kenneth Walker
Chiefs
18 carries, 147 yards, 2 TD
THE STORY SO FAR
WHAT DECIDED IT
On the ground
Chiefs 146, Dolphins 0
Chiefs
Through the air
Dolphins 386, Chiefs 305
Dolphins
Total yards
Chiefs 451, Dolphins 386
Chiefs
Giveaways
Dolphins 0, Chiefs 4
Dolphins
THE ROOM
Final. The recap is below.
THE MATCHUP SCOUT
every number below is counted from the export or read off the roster — nothing is inferred about playcalling
LEAGUE DATA
counted by Madden, and arithmetic on top of it
Balanced
Pass 54% · Rush 46% · 43.9 scored, 32.4 allowed
11.9 yds/att
63.0% completions
6.7 yds/carry
455.4 yds/game
1.3 giveaways/game
6.2% sack rate
last 5: 3-2
SAPPHIRE METRICS
QB efficiency 71 · Aggressive
Balance 96
Ball security 64
Back usage 43%
QB runs 1.4/game
Most exposed: one-man passing game -- Xavier Worthy takes 38% of the receiving yards
PERSONNEL
off the roster — unit averages, best starters only
QB 98
WR 84
TE 76
RB 85
OL 85
DL 86
LB 85
DB 83
Best: Patrick Mahomes QB 98
Fastest: Xavier Worthy WR 99 SPD
10 at star dev or better
YOUR NOTEBOOK
what you wrote about them — private, and never a Sapphire statistic
Sign in as a member of this league to keep private scouting notes on your opponents.
LEAGUE DATA
counted by Madden, and arithmetic on top of it
Pass-heavy
Pass 84% · Rush 16% · 38.4 scored, 25.1 allowed
12.5 yds/att
59.8% completions
5.4 yds/carry
438.9 yds/game
1.2 giveaways/game
5.4% sack rate
last 5: 5-0
SAPPHIRE METRICS
QB efficiency 70 · Efficient
Balance 61
Ball security 65
Back usage 8%
QB runs 2.9/game
PERSONNEL
off the roster — unit averages, best starters only
QB 91
WR 79
TE 95
RB 72
OL 78
DL 85
LB 74
DB 82
Best: Brock Bowers TE 95
Fastest: Jeff Caldwell WR 95 SPD
6 at star dev or better
YOUR NOTEBOOK
what you wrote about them — private, and never a Sapphire statistic
Sign in as a member of this league to keep private scouting notes on your opponents.
HOW THEY PLAY
the man, not the franchise — only weeks the record attributes to him, this season
stuuumouuu
Dolphins · his last 8 games
Throws it
Runs the quarterback
Pass / run84% / 16%
Points for / against38.4 — 25.1
Margin+13.2
Giveaways a game1.2
Sacks taken5.4% of dropbacks
Lead backEli Heidenreich · 1.8/g
Top targetJeff Caldwell · 36%
QB carries2.1 a game
Prodigy
Chiefs · his last 7 games
Runs it
One back
One target
Pass / run54% / 46%
Points for / against43.9 — 32.4
Margin+11.4
Giveaways a game1.3
Sacks taken6.2% of dropbacks
Lead backKenneth Walker · 18.3/g
Top targetXavier Worthy · 38%
QB carries1.1 a game
Counted from the weeks each man actually held his team — so a franchise that changed hands is not credited to whoever has it now. Nothing above is a playcall: the export does not carry those, and neither does this.
THE SERIES
Prodigy against stuuumouuu — the men, not the teams
Prodigy leads it 1-0.
Prodigy won the last one.
1 meeting
avg 43.0 — 39.0
biggest: 4 pts to Prodigy
S1 · week 3
Prodigy 43 — 39 stuuumouuu
PRODIGY
Only meetings Sapphire can attribute to both men are counted — a Madden export never says who owned a team last season, so the series starts where the record does.
MATCHUP ADVANTAGES
unit averages against each other — inside three points is a push
Chiefs receivers vs Dolphins secondary
84 v 82
EVEN
Dolphins receivers vs Chiefs secondary
79 v 83
CHIEFS
Chiefs line vs Dolphins front
85 v 85
EVEN
Dolphins line vs Chiefs front
78 v 86
CHIEFS
Chiefs backs vs Dolphins run defence
85 v 81
CHIEFS
Dolphins backs vs Chiefs run defence
72 v 85
CHIEFS
Chiefs passer vs Dolphins secondary
98 v 82
CHIEFS
Dolphins passer vs Chiefs secondary
91 v 83
DOLPHINS
TOP PERFORMERS
🎬
The Game Recapthis game as an episode -- the score, the stars, the numbers that decided it -- and a video you can post ›
BOX SCORE
CHIEFS
DOLPHINS
CHIEFS
DOLPHINS
CHIEFS
DOLPHINS
CHIEFS
DOLPHINS
CHIEFS
DOLPHINS
CHIEFS
| PLAYER | C/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | SCK | LNG | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick Mahomes QB | 17/27 | 305 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 61 | 101.6 |
DOLPHINS
| PLAYER | C/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | SCK | LNG | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Malik Willis QB | 22/41 | 386 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 61 | 110.4 |
CHIEFS
| PLAYER | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | BTK | YAC | LNG | FUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kenneth Walker HB | 18 | 147 | 8.2 | 2 | 3 | 36 | 32 | 0 |
| Patrick Mahomes QB | 1 | -1 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
DOLPHINS
| PLAYER | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | BTK | YAC | LNG | FUM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyle Pitts Sr TE | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
CHIEFS
| PLAYER | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | YAC | DRP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyquan Thornton WR | 4 | 121 | 30.2 | 2 | 51 | 0 | 61 |
| Rashee Rice WR | 4 | 79 | 19.8 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 33 |
| Jonnu Smith TE | 5 | 68 | 13.6 | 1 | 39 | 0 | 36 |
| Kenneth Walker HB | 2 | 20 | 10 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 18 |
| Xavier Worthy WR | 2 | 17 | 8.5 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 11 |
DOLPHINS
| PLAYER | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | YAC | DRP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kyle Pitts Sr TE | 6 | 116 | 19.3 | 0 | 38 | 0 | 36 |
| Jeff Caldwell WR | 4 | 71 | 17.8 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 31 |
| Brock Bowers TE | 2 | 35 | 17.5 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 20 |
| Chris Bell WR | 3 | 32 | 10.7 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 15 |
| KJ Hamler WR | 2 | 24 | 12 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 21 |
CHIEFS
| PLAYER | TKL | SCK | INT | PD | FF | CMP ALW | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kam Curl SS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jaden Hicks SS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| George Karlaftis LEDG | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Derrick Moore LEDG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jacob Rodriguez SAM | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mansoor Delane CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| L'Jarius Sneed CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Drue Tranquill WILL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peter Woods DT | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kader Kohou CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Jones DT | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nick Bolton MIKE | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kaiir Elam FS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
DOLPHINS
| PLAYER | TKL | SCK | INT | PD | FF | CMP ALW | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lonnie Johnson Jr FS | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Cole Wisniewski FS | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ethan Bonner CB | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Joey Bosa REDG | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cory Trice Jr FS | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Uar Bernard DT | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Art Green CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nick Emmanwori SS | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kain Medrano LEDG | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jalyn Armour-Davis CB | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Miles Battle CB | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
CHIEFS
nothing recorded
DOLPHINS
| PLAYER | FG | XP | LNG |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cade York K | 2/2 | 3/4 | 45 |
RECENT FORM
Chiefs
W
36–22 vs Colts
WK 2
W
52–31 vs Broncos
WK 1
Dolphins
L
35–56 vs 49ers
WK 2
W
34–0 vs Raiders
WK 1
TEAM STATS
| Chiefs | Dolphins | |
|---|---|---|
| 451 | TOTAL YARDS | 386 |
| 305 | PASSING YARDS | 386 |
| 146 | RUSHING YARDS | 0 |
| 0 | SACKS ALLOWED | 4 |
| 4 | SACKS MADE | 1 |
| 4 | GIVEAWAYS | 0 |
| 0 | TAKEAWAYS | 3 |
Bold is the side that won that line. Giveaways come off a team's own offensive rows and takeaways off its own defensive rows — two separate payloads, so they need not tie out against each other.
ALL-TIME HEAD-TO-HEAD
1
CHIEFS
—
0
DOLPHINS