Even in the face of more injuries, your Kansas City Chiefs seemed to be in complete control during Saturday’s 27-19 win over the Houston Texans on GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.

Your two-time defending Super Bowl champions are now 14-1. Unless the New England Patriots give Kansas City an early Christmas present by defeating the Buffalo Bills during Sunday’s late afternoon window, the Chiefs can lock down the AFC’s No. 1 playoff seed with a Christmas Day win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Let’s recognize some Kansas City players who made a difference during Saturday’s win.

Winners

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Cornerback Trent McDuffie: Already an All Pro, he’s now a turnover machine. He’s now had a pick in two straight weeks — and continues to show us his greatness in tackling and coverage greatness. Honorable mention to rookie Jaden Hicks, who also had another interception.

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes: The two-time MVP turned in a solid passing performance with 260 yards and a touchdown, taking only one sack behind a makeshift offensive line. But he did that while playing on a high ankle sprain — and on the ground, he was in championship form, splitting the defense and lowering his shoulder to score on a 15-yard scramble.

Wide receiver Hollywood Brown: It took a long time for us to be able to say this, but welcome to Kansas City, Mr. Brown. Five catches for 45 yards — including a fourth-and-1 conversion on his first reception — was a solid debut. He doesn’t appear to have missed a beat — nor does it seem that Mahomes has lost any trust in No. 5.

Running back Samaje Perine: While the savvy eighth-year veteran didn’t get a carry on Saturday, he did catch all three of his targets for 50 critical yards. He’s setting into an important role — and is showing a knack for improvising with his quarterback.

EDGE George Karlaftis: In recent weeks, the former Purdue Boilermaker been a consistent force, getting around the edge with his usual relentless effort. Against Houston, “Furious George” was on a tear, collecting four quarterback hits and a batted pass — and could have gotten credit for a sack when he and Mike Pennel chased the Texans’ quarterback C.J. Stroud out of bounds.

Wide receiver Xavier Worthy: It was another quality outing for the speedy rookie, leading Kansas City receivers with seven catches for 65 yards and a score. He’s making his presence felt in every way except deep passes. On Saturday, he had another rep where he caught the ball, but wasn’t able to get his feet inbounds.

Losers

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Running back Isiah Pacheco: The Chiefs have been splitting carries fairly evenly between Pacheco and Kareem Hunt. But on this day, Hunt got more — and was more productive, too. Pacheco finished with just nine carries for 26 yards — and lost a yard on his only reception. His time will come.

EDGE Mike Danna: Even as the defense has improved in this area, his pass rush productivity is down. While still a valuable part of the defensive line’s rotation, Danna has been quiet so far this season, recording only 1.5 sacks.