Kareem Hunt fumbled his 1st NFL carry but made up for it with 3 touchdowns

The Kansas City Chiefs anointed third-round rookie Kareem Hunt the starting running back when Spencer Ware went down with a season-ending knee injury. Hunt’s first NFL game was against the New England Patriots, which is about as tough a challenge as you can imagine.

Hunt’s first NFL carry ... did not go well. He lost a fumble on the Chiefs’ opening drive, which was the first fumble since his freshman year in college. The Chiefs, already down 7-0 at that point, could’ve easily folded like a tent. Instead, they hung in there and Hunt made a few nice runs to get his confidence back up.

“I just had to forget about it,” Hunt told NBC’s Michele Tafoya after the game. “I had guys like Justin Houston telling me ‘You just have to forget about the bad plays and keep playing ball.’ I know I’m better than that and I just had to go out there and recover and make up for it.”

At the end of the second quarter, Hunt fully redeemed himself with his first NFL touchdown, helping the Chiefs claw back from a 10-point deficit.

Hunt had an even more impressive touchdown in the fourth quarter, blowing past the Patriots defense for a 78-yard catch-and-run score.

The Patriots had a 17-14 lead at halftime, but thanks to Hunt, the Chiefs jumped to a 28-27 lead later in the game. They added to that lead with Hunt’s third touchdown of the night, a 4-yard run to the pylon.

Hunt finished the game with 14 carries for 148 yards, five receptions for 98 yards, and three total touchdowns. Starting his career with a fumble wasn’t perfect, but this was probably a night Hunt with look back at with fond memories.