INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Coming in for the injured Alex Smith, Nick Foles kept the Kansas City Chiefs on a roll on Sunday.

It’s a job he may have to hold down a while longer.

Foles threw for one touchdown pass each time he replaced Smith, leading the Chiefs to their third consecutive victory, 30-14 at Indianapolis on Sunday.

Smith left twice after taking hits to the head, once with a cut on his ear that left him disoriented and the second time with a concussion.

Somehow, the tag-team quarterbacks kept the Chiefs chugging along against Indy’s struggling defense.

“He has a pretty good feel for the offense. He’s been in it before,” coach Andy Reid said. “He’s been a Pro Bowl player before. He’s pretty good.”

It was a rough game for the Chiefs, who lost Smith twice after hits to the head and finished the game with Charcandrick West as their only healthy running back.

Smith left on the game’s opening series, but was cleared by doctors to return. He left again early in the third quarter after Clayton Geathers shoved Smith’s head to the turf as the quarterback tried to slide underneath the tackle.

Geathers said the hit was not intentional, but the hit left Smith with a concussion and he did not return.

But both quarterbacks got the job done.

Foles’ 14-yard TD pass to Travis Kelce early in the second quarter made it 10-0. Smith made it 17-7 at halftime with a 13-yard TD pass to Jeremy Maclin, and after Smith’s second departure, Foles hooked up with Tyreek Hill on a 34-yard scoring pass for a 24-7 lead.

Foles finished 16 of 22 for 223 yards with no interceptions.

And this time, the Chiefs (5-2) defense prevented Andrew Luck from pulling off another comeback — similar to the previous time these teams met in January 2014.

Luck has three come-from-behind wins this season with Indy (3-5) and tried to deliver another one Sunday, but couldn’t get the Colts closer than 24-14.

Luck was 19 of 35 with 210 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, one fumble lost on a day his top receiver T.Y. Hilton caught only one pass.

“I struggled,” Luck said. “I think every offensive player in the room felt like we let each other down.”

SOCIAL MEDIA CONCERN

The social media traffic about the hits on Smith came from all corners. Some fans questioned whether Geathers intentionally drove Smith’s head into the turf to knock him out of the game. Former Colts linebacker Gary Brackett wrote on Twitter that whoever cleared Smith to return should be fired, while the television announcers questioned the play call because of Smith’s previous injury. Even Smith’s wife, Elizabeth, piped in — questioning how many hits it takes to draw a flag. Smith took several hits to the head in last week’s game that weren’t called.

TROUBLE WITH TRAVIS

Travis Kelce exposed an old flaw in the Colts’ defense, covering tight ends. The Colts struggled with that all of last season, and Kelce took advantage again Sunday. He matched his season high with six receptions in the first half and finished with seven catches for 101 yards, both season highs.

SLOW START

After better starts each of the past two weeks, the Colts reverted to their old form against the Chiefs. Not only did they trail 17-7 at halftime, they were lucky it wasn’t worse given that Kansas City had a 4 1/2-minute advantage in time of possession in the first half, settled for a 33-yard field goal and missed a 28-yarder.

INJURY REPORT

Chiefs: In addition to Smith, starting running back Spencer Ware missed the second half with a concussion. Ware started in place of Jamaal Charles , who was inactive because of swelling in his surgically repaired knee. Left guard Parker Ehinger also left in the second half with a right knee injury and did not return.

Colts: The Colts began the game without three starters and got hit even harder during the game. Pro Bowl cornerback Vontae Davis and right tackle Joe Reitz both left with concussions and did not return. Hilton returned after hurting his hamstring bur wasn’t the same. And receiver Phillip Dorsett sustained an undisclosed injury on the second to last play of the game.

THEY SAID IT

Chiefs: “If we were at all concerned, we wouldn’t have put him back in. That’s the bottom line,” Reid talking about the decision to let Smith return in the second quarter.

Colts: “We took a step back today, that’s obvious,” coach Chuck Pagano said.

UP NEXT:

Colts: Travel to Green Bay next Sunday.

Chiefs: Host Jacksonville next Sunday.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Alex Smith threw two touchdown passes in another efficient outing, Daniel Sorensen returned an interception of Drew Brees for another touchdown and the Kansas City Chiefs held off the mistake-prone New Orleans Saints 27-21 on Sunday.

Spencer Ware ran for 77 yards to go with his 46-yard touchdown reception, and Tyreek Hill made an acrobat 38-yard TD catch to help the Chiefs (4-2) win their ninth straight at home.

Brees got the Saints (2-4) within 24-21 with his touchdown pass to Brandon Coleman with 2:33 left, but the ensuing onside kick went out of bounds. Kansas City added a 41-yard field goal, and the Saints could do nothing in the final 28 seconds to change the outcome.

Brees finished with 367 yards and three TD passes, but much of that offense came while he was trying to rally the Saints. It was actually another uneven performance away from the Superdome for the star quarterback, who was coming off a 465-yard game last week against Carolina.

Meanwhile, the Chiefs showed some mettle after falling into an early 7-0 hole. Ware’s touchdown on a screen pass and Sorensen’s pick-six off a batted ball quickly turned the momentum, and Hill added his long touchdown reception to make it 21-7 at the break.

The Saints drew within a touchdown on Mark Ingram’s catch midway through the third quarter, but the 2009 Heisman Trophy winner fumbled inside the Kansas City 10 with 8:26 left in the game and the Chiefs leading 24-14.

New Orleans got the ball back and eventually scored, but the wasted time proved costly.

LOTS OF LAUNDRY

The Saints struggled with the crowd noise in Arrowhead Stadium, getting flagged for four false starts and a delay of game. They also got hit with two unnecessary roughness penalties, including one with just over two minutes left that kept them from getting the ball back.

REID ROLLS 300

The Chiefs’ Andy Reid coached his 300th game Sunday. Most of those were over his 14 seasons in Philadelphia, where he was 140-102-1. He is now 36-21 in his fourth season in Kansas City.

INJURY REPORT

Saints: LB Dannell Ellerbe (quad), LB Stephone Anthony (hamstring) and CB Delvin Breaux (broken leg) left New Orleans without three defensive starters, while starting LG Andrus Peat (groin) was also out. Backup LG Senio Kelemete later left with a stinger, forcing Tim Lelito into the lineup.

Chiefs: Starting CB Phillip Gaines (knee) was inactive, while RB Jamaal Charles (knee swelling) was active in a limited role. He had just one carry early in the game.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs have traded backup running back Knile Davis to the Green Bay Packers, who desperately need to add depth to their injury-riddled backfield.

The Packers gave up a conditional draft pick Tuesday for Davis, who has already started practicing with his new team.

The Packers needed help at running back with Eddie Lacy nursing a bothersome ankle and James Starks undergoing knee surgery. Lacy was their only active running back against Dallas on Sunday, when he rushed for 65 yards on 17 carries in a 30-16 loss.

Starks will be out a couple of weeks. Lacy was being held out of practice Wednesday because the ankle was “very sore,” coach Mike McCarthy said.

That means the Packers will have to get Davis up to speed on the playbook quickly if he’s going to be ready when the Chicago Bears visit Lambeau Field on Thursday night.

“It’s obviously a big challenge when you’re on a short week, but he’s definitely a talented young player,” McCarthy said. “So just looking forward to getting him into the mix and get going.”

Top cornerback Sam Shields, who has been out since the season opener with a concussion, was placed on injured reserve to make room for Davis on the active roster.

The Packers have been struggling in the passing game, and the injuries to Lacy and Starks have added to their issues on offense. McCarty got a look at Davis in Green Bay’s last preseason game, when he ran for 58 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries in the Chiefs’ 17-7 win on Sept. 1.

Davis had been passed over by Spencer Ware and Charcandrick West on the Chiefs’ depth chart, and the return of Jamaal Charles from his knee injury made him expendable.

“I feel like I’m off the reins,” Davis said after practice Tuesday. “I’m just excited to be a part of Green Bay and do I can here. Hopefully my role is bigger.”

The Kansas City Star first reported the trade.

Davis, the former Arkansas standout, was the Chiefs’ third-round pick in 2013. He was expected to team with Charles in a power-and-lightning backfield. But issues with fumbles that plagued him in college continued in the NFL, and he gradually lost playing time to other running backs.

His best season was 2014, when he ran for 463 yards and six touchdowns. But he’s only carried 29 times for 70 yards and a touchdown the past two seasons combined.

Davis was a longshot to make the Kansas City roster out of training camp, but his special teams ability may have made the difference. He’s averaged 27.2 yards on kickoff returns during his four-year career, and returned three kicks for touchdowns.

The fact that the Chiefs and Packers were trade partners is hardly surprising. Chiefs general manager John Dorsey played for the Packers in the 1980s, spent most of his career in their front office and rose to director of football operations before joining the Chiefs prior to the 2013 season.

Davis was the third player he drafted in Kansas City.

CHIEFS MOVES

The Davis deal was the start of a slew of roster moves on Tuesday for Kansas City. The Chiefs signed free agent defensive lineman Kendall Reyes, who was Washington for two games this season. He previously played four years in San Diego.

Kansas City added cornerback Terrance Mitchell, defensive lineman Rakeem Nunez-Roches and linebacker Ramik Wilson from its practice squad.

Defensive end Allen Bailey and linebacker Justin March-Lillard were placed on injured reserve. Defensive lineman Nick Williams was waived.

— Associated Press —

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — With two weeks to stew over a lopsided loss, the Kansas City Chiefs went back to basics and put together a balanced offense that allowed the running game to shine.

Spencer Ware ran for a career-high 131 yards and a touchdown, Alex Smith picked apart Oakland’s struggling defense and the Kansas City Chiefs shut out Derek Carr and the Raiders in the second half of a 26-10 victory Sunday.

“That’s the game we play,” said defensive lineman Dontari Poe, who got into the act on offense with a TD run of his own.

“You come out sometimes and it doesn’t go your way, but you got to make sure it goes your way the next time. Can’t keep on the downward spiral. You got to get it back up.”

In their first game since getting blown out by 29 points in Pittsburgh two weeks ago, the Chiefs (3-2) efficiently handled a Raiders team that had overcome defensive shortcomings with a big-play offense to lead the AFC West.

Smith completed 19 of 22 passes for 224 yards and the Chiefs forced two turnovers by Carr to dampen a fast start to the season by the Raiders (4-2), who are trying to end a 13-year playoff drought.

“I felt like we did a great job taking our shot today and when we did, hitting them,” Smith said. “But certainly the running game got us going and staying with that. Those guys drove it down in the beginning.”

Marcus Peters set up Ware’s TD run with an early interception of Carr and Dee Ford forced a fumble from Carr in the fourth quarter to end any hopes of a late comeback.

After allowing a touchdown on the opening drive, the Chiefs held the Raiders to one field goal the rest of the way.

“It hurts man,” Carr said. “We didn’t do good enough at all. That was bad. That was a bad performance by us.”

BIG-MAN TD: The 346-pound Poe showed off some versatility. With the Chiefs facing 3rd-and-goal from the 1 in the third quarter, Poe came in as an eligible receiver. He initially lined up in the backfield before shifting out wide right. He then took a lateral from Smith and bulled with way into the end zone for the TD . It was the first TD run by a defensive player since Poe had won last year against San Diego.

“I’m taking credit for that one for all the chubby guys out there,” coach Andy Reid said. “He’s got phenomenal hands. … It’s just a matter of looking it in, be patient and then cut the beast loose.”

WELCOME BACK: After getting only two carries in his first game back from a torn ACL, Jamaal Charles played a bigger role this week. He scored his first TD since Sept. 28, 2015, with a 4-yard run midway through the second quarter. Charles finished with nine carries for 33 yards and two catches for 14 yards.

QUICK TURNAROUND: Just when it looked as if the Chiefs would add on to a 13-7 lead late in the first half, there was a major momentum shift. Spencer Ware was stopped for a 2-yard loss on third-and-1 by Stacy McGee and Cairo Santos missed a 38-yard field goal. The Raiders took over with 25 seconds left and one timeout. But Carr quickly completed three passes for 44 yards and then spiked the ball with 1 second left, setting up a 46-yard field goal by Sebastian Janikowski that cut Kansas City’s lead to 13-10 at the half.

All that momentum was erased when Kansas City took the second-half kickoff and drove down for a touchdown.

“To come out and let them go right down the field to start the second half, that’s a major can’t do,” coach Jack Del Rio said.

HAPPY HOMECOMING: For the second straight year, Peters had an interception in his return to his hometown. Peters left the game for a bit in the second half to go through the concussion protocol, but was cleared and able to return.

FAST START: The Raiders jumped out early, thanks to a 50-yard return of the opening kick by Jalen Richard. Carr completed four of five passes on the ensuing drive, including a 3-yarder to Andre Holmes that made it 7-0 with Oakland’s second first-drive TD of the season. That was about it for highlights for the Raiders as Carr struggled in the rain and wasn’t helped by dropped third-down passes from Seth Roberts and Richard.

— Associated Press —