The Kansas City Chiefs are the NFL’s only remaining undefeated team, thanks in large part to a rookie third-round pick from Toledo. Now they will put their perfect record on the line against another impressive rookie when they visit the Houston Texans in Week 5. Kareem Hunt and Deshaun Watson will have the spotlight to themselves when the Chiefs and Texans meet on Sunday Night Football. It will be a prime-time showcase for two of the league’s most impressive young talents.

Hunt’s production through the first four weeks of the season has been historically good. While he is the obvious Rookie of the Year frontrunner, Hunt has been good enough to be in the early season MVP discussion.

Hunt leads the NFL with 659 yards from scrimmage. That’s the second-highest total through a player’s first four games in NFL history, behind only Billy Sims. According to Elias, Hunt needs 129 yards from scrimmage against the Texans to break Eric Dickerson’s record for the most through five career games. He could also join Adrian Peterson as the only rookies in NFL history to record at least 100 yards from scrimmage in four straight games to start their career.

Hunt’s emergence in Kansas City is the result of an ideal combination of talent, scheme and usage. The Chiefs have averaged a ridiculous 6.41 yards per carry, which is the second-highest average through four games by an NFL team since the 1970 merger. Kansas City has also been almost automatic running the football on third down, converting 91.7 per cent of attempts to move the sticks.

Hunt’s production in the second half alone would be enough to lead the NFL in rushing yards this season. He’s recorded 372 rushing yards in the third and fourth quarters of games this season. No other running back has more than 362 rushing yards in total heading in to Week 5.

Hunt’s talent has helped elevate a Kansas City offence that leads the AFC with 30.5 points per game this season. He will have another opportunity to add to his historic start on Sunday Night Football.

Watson has also made history as the first rookie to lead the NFL in Total QBR through the first four weeks of a season. The reigning AFC Offensive Player of the Week is coming off his best performance after accounting for 307 total yards and five touchdowns in a 57-14 win over the Tennessee Titans.

Watson has made his share of mistakes, which can be expected from a rookie passer. At the same time, Watson has helped transform an offence that has shown marked improvement over the last three games with his mobility, confidence and willingness to take shots downfield.

Watson’s ability to make plays with his legs has become a major strength for the Houston offence. His 49-yard touchdown run against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2 is the perfect example of his potential to make something out of nothing when things break down around him. While he won’t run for a 40-plus yard score every week, the threat of the run will impact the way opposing defences game plan for the Texans. Houston ran a number of option looks in last week’s win over Tennessee, including on Watson’s one-yard touchdown run late in the first half.

The ability to force opposing defences to account for Watson’s mobility could also help negate some of the poor offensive line play. The Texans offensive line has allowed Watson to be pressured on 39 per cent of his drop backs, which is the second-highest rate in the NFL. Houston’s offensive line has controlled the line of scrimmage on a league-low 43 per cent of drop backs this season.

The Texans have also increased their play-action usage with Watson under centre. After running only five play-action pass plays in Watson’s debut against Cincinnati, Houston has run a league-high 27 combined play-action passes over the last two weeks. Watson went 6-of-10 for 119 yards and two touchdowns on play-action against the Titans.

One key matchup to watch for this week is Texans’ No. 1 wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins versus Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters. Watson has leaned heavily on Hopkins, who leads the NFL with 31 receptions on 49 targets. Watson has completed 17-of-20 attempts targeting Hopkins over the last two weeks. If the Kansas City defence is going to slow down Watson, they will need to do their best to take away his best option in the passing game.

The Chiefs can match a franchise record for most consecutive road wins by extending their current run to nine in a row when they play Houston on Sunday. In order for that to happen, Kansas City will need another great performance from Hunt. The Chiefs will also need to slow down Watson just one week after he led the Texans to a franchise-record 57 points against the Titans. Houston hasn’t reached the 20-point mark in any of its last four games against Kansas City. They also didn’t have Watson under centre in any of those games.

The Chiefs and Texans have leaned heavily on a pair of first-year stars early this season. The rookies will have the spotlight to themselves when they meet under the bright lights on Sunday Night Football.