The Chiefs haven’t gone anywhere. Patrick Mahomes definitely hasn’t slipped.

The Chiefs going 3-3 to start the season isn’t ideal but not the end of a dynasty either. Kansas City cooled off the NFL’s hottest team, the Detroit Lions, with a 30-17 win on Sunday night. The key was Mahomes, who is playing some of the best ball of his great career.

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Mahomes had three touchdown passes and one rushing, and was in control of the whole game.

There has been a lot of discussion over the Chiefs’ relatively slow start and whether that meant they were in trouble. It looked like there was not much reason to worry Sunday night.

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The Chiefs knew that the first six games of the season would be a challenge. The schedule was difficult. They were without Rashee Rice, the Chiefs’ top receiver. He returns next week after serving a six-game suspension.

The Chiefs aren’t used to being just .500 this deep into the season, but the win over the Lions showed again that they are capable of beating anyone, especially with Mahomes playing like he is. Kansas City will likely end the season as a Super Bowl contender, as usual.

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There shouldn’t have been much doubt about that.

Chiefs take halftime lead

After a Sunday that had some rough performances around the NFL, Sunday night featured two entertaining teams.

The Lions seemed to have gotten the night started with a trick play for a touchdown, on a touchdown pass from running back David Montgomery to quarterback Jared Goff, but officials ruled that Goff went in motion illegally and the touchdown was taken off the board. The Lions settled for a field goal.

Mahomes had two touchdowns in the first half, one on a pass to Xavier Worthy and another rushing. The Lions had a nice score on a 22-yard TD pass from Goff to Jameson Williams. Both offenses executed at a high level. Each defense got a big stop on fourth down before halftime. One of the few miscues was a Harrison Butker missed extra point for the Chiefs, and his ongoing struggles might have been a factor in Andy Reid going for it on fourth down from Detroit’s 19-yard line later in the half. That fourth down ended with an incomplete pass.

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The Chiefs led 13-10 at halftime, and it could have been a bigger lead. But the Chiefs extended the lead right away in the second half.

Chiefs have a strong 2nd half

The Chiefs had a quick touchdown drive to start the second half, with Mahomes shipping a shovel pass to Hollywood Brown, who ran in for a 9-yard touchdown and a 20-10 Chiefs lead. The score didn’t change until early in the fourth quarter, when Lions tight end Sam LaPorta made an excellent one-handed catch in the back of the end zone to cut Kansas City’s lead to three points.

That’s when Mahomes took back the momentum. He led a nine-play, 54-yard drive, and hit Brown for another touchdown. When the Chiefs forced a three-and-out on the Lions’ next possession, the win was practically ensured.

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Kansas City’s defense did a fine job against the Lions’ explosive offense, particularly in the second half. The Chiefs’ offense has had its issues, but it ran the ball well, Mahomes was efficient and Kansas City piled up 26 first downs and more than 350 yards.

A few losses in close games made it look like the Chiefs might be fading. A loss to the Lions would have put them in an unfortunate spot. But on Sunday night, the way the Chiefs dominated one of the NFL’s best teams looked quite familiar.