KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Chiefs invested a first-round draft pick in rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire, but it paid off handsomely in his NFL debut.
Edwards-Helaire, a former LSU standout, starred in Kansas City's 34-20 season-opening win Thursday against the Houston Texans with 138 yards, including a 27-yard touchdown, on 25 carries,.
He is the first NFL players to rush for 100 yards in his NFL debut since Saquon Barkeley’s first game in 2018.
After his 27-yard TD run, Clyde Edwards-Helaire became the first player with 100+ rush yards and a rush TD in an NFL debut since Saquon Barkley in Week 1, 2018 vs the Jaguars
— NFL Research (@NFLResearch) September 11, 2020
Edwards-Helaire capped a 75-yard march to open the second half with an impressive 27-yard scamper, making an open-field cut that left Texans safety Eric Reid on the ground before he accelerated to the end zone.
How's this for a first career TD? @Clydro_22 #ChiefsKingdom
— NFL (@NFL) September 11, 2020
📺: #HOUvsKC on NBC
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The rookie raised eyebrows during training camp, earning the starting job vacated by Damien Williams' decision to opt out of the 2020 season.
Edwards-Helaire said in an exclusive interview with 41 Action News that he expected to have "pregame jitters’, but added “that's what makes people make plays."
