Biggest Winners and Losers From Chiefs’ Week 6 Win Over the Chargers

Kansas City dominated a now-0-6 opponent but left enough on the field to raise real questions as the schedule gets considerably harder over the next two weeks.

Oct 18, 2026; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs running back Kenneth Walker III (9) rushes during the fourth quarter against the Los Angeles Chargers at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Kansas City Chiefs are 5-0, and you'll never apologize for a double-digit win in the NFL. Sunday’s 22-6 win over the Los Angeles Chargers was dominant in the ways that mattered most, and the next two weeks will get a whole lot stiffer against the defending Super Bowl champion Seahawks and the reigning AFC West champion Broncos. 

The Chargers never posed a genuine threat to Kansas City’s win column, but the Chiefs left enough on the field Sunday afternoon that the locker room will know there is plenty to clean up before the real tests arrive. 

Here is a full breakdown of the biggest winners and losers from Week 6.

Winners

Kenneth Walker, Running Back

Running back Kenneth Walker deserves his flowers, once again. With the Chiefs struggling to punch it into the end zone for much of the afternoon, he took matters into his own hands twice. The first came on a third-and-one when he bypassed the red zone entirely, ripping off a 33-yard touchdown on a straightforward up-the-gut call. 

The second came at the end of an eight-play, 80-yard drive, where he was met in the backfield by Chargers defenders, bounced off them, and dove into the end zone from two yards out. Walker now has 665 rushing yards and six touchdown runs, the most rushing yards through a player’s first five games with a franchise in NFL history. 

Xavier Worthy, Wide Receiver

With Tyquan Thornton on IR and Rashee Rice still sidelined with his hamstring, Xavier Worthy was the player the team needed most to step up in Week 6 and beyond. He answered the call in his first real audition as the team’s primary wide receiver option in 2026. Mahomes targeted him seven times, and Worthy caught all seven for 73 yards. 

His longest gain was 19 yards, which suggests this wasn't a splash-play performance but a consistent, reliable one. With Jalen Royals and Cyrus Allen still finding their footing, Worthy’s ability to be a dependable option for Mahomes was the afternoon's most encouraging development.

George Karlaftis, Defensive End

The sack drought is over. After three straight games without getting home, the Chiefs recorded four sacks Sunday, and no pass rusher performed more impactfully than George Karlaftis. Karlaftis secured his one sack on the Chargers’ final offensive drive, the second of back-to-back sacks that sealed the 22-6 victory. 

In PFF’s preliminary grades, he finished with nine pressures and a sack, following up his 11-pressure performance against the Raiders with another dominant afternoon. He also batted down two of Justin Herbert’s passes, adding a dimension to his game that the traditional box score doesn't always show. Karlaftis has been the most consistent performer on the defensive line over six weeks, and Sunday was no different.

Losers

Harrison Butker, Kicker

Special teams was once again a theme in the losers column, and Harrison Butker was the central figure. He missed a 52-yard field goal and an extra point on the Chiefs’ first touchdown, giving Kansas City a 9-3 lead instead of 10-3. 

The misses beyond 50 yards are understandable, but Butker is the league's fourth-highest-paid kicker. Over five games, he has three missed field goals and one missed extra point, and as the schedule tightens, those points will matter enormously at times. It didn't cost the Chiefs this time, but in Seattle and Denver over the next two weeks, misses can matter. 

Nikko Remigio, Returner

Nikko Remigio is on the 53-man roster for one thing: to be reliable in the return game. It would be unfair to call him unreliable at this point, but he fumbled a punt return while trying to extend a gain. 

Luckily, the Chiefs allowed a combined negative yardage on the two Chargers drives that sandwiched the turnover, but they can't afford mishaps like that moving forward. Against Seattle or Denver, that kind of fortune is unlikely to repeat. Remigio is a trusted Dave Toub player, and his roster spot isn't in immediate danger, but Chiefs Kingdom, who is growing tired of special teams woes, won't forget the fumble.

The Red Zone and Short-Yardage Offense

Walker’s 33-yard third-and-one touchdown was the lone bright spot in an otherwise brutal day in the red zone and short-yardage situations. The Chiefs failed to convert a separate third-and-one, turned the ball over on downs on a fourth-and-goal at the one-yard line, and Mahomes threw an interception on a third-and-goal at the Los Angeles two. 

In total, Kansas City went 1-for-4 inside the red zone, 3-for-10 on third downs, and 0-for-1 on fourth downs. That's why a team that outgained the Chargers 422 yards to 259 won by only 16 points. Mahomes threw for 9.1 yards per attempt in a quietly brilliant performance, but the team's inability to execute in key moments kept a bad Chargers team within two scores for the all game. 

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