Patrick Mahomes on Chiefs’ Grit: ‘We’re Finding Ways to Win Games'
The Kansas City Chiefs got outgained by the Green Bay Packers in passing yards, rushing yards and yards per play, yet they emerged victorious on Sunday and escaped with a 13-7 win that got them back above the .500 mark on the year. It was far from pretty but nevertheless, the team's playmakers stepped up when necessary.
In what head coach Andy Reid best described as "vintage," the trio of Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill made key plays on the Chiefs' final drive to ice the game. Steve Spagnuolo's defense also did a phenomenal job containing Packers quarterback Jordan Love, and the Chiefs' special teams unit was stellar as well. After the game, Mahomes admitted that he and his teammates aren't performing well enough on offense. He also believes that getting tough wins is crucial.
"Obviously, we're not playing offensively the way we wanted to and the way we expect to, but we're finding ways to get wins," Mahomes said. "Defense is playing great football, special teams is doing a great job and until we find that same mojo that we've had for so long, we're still battling through. Guys are stepping up and making plays to win football games."
The aforementioned mojo has been missing in action for a month now. After opening the season as arguably the best offensive attack in all of football, the Chiefs have gone stale and are struggling to string together successful drives. A lot of that starts with Mahomes, but some of it falls on Reid. There certainly isn't any shortage of blame to go around, as Mahomes' weapons and offensive line have also let him down at times this year. With that said, the 26-year-old superstar field general isn't losing any hope whatsoever. On the contrary: He thinks something big is around the corner.
"I'm still extremely confident," Mahomes said. "I know we're going to find it as an offense. We have too many good players, we have too special of coaches in this organization to not find it. The offensive line, I'm really confident in them, they're playing really good football these last few weeks. I think as they come together and keep this offense going, I expect us to start making plays here soon."
Two weeks ago against the New York Giants, the Chiefs committed to a short passing game and some runs in an effort to set up big plays. They took some shots downfield, but they weren't successful. More "shot" plays occurred against Green Bay but again, either Mahomes misfired or his receivers couldn't adjust to his deep-ball throws. The element that's made the Chiefs such a lethal force in recent years (and even months) has been virtually nonexistent for the better part of four games. That's a problem.
Mahomes is confident that things will be figured out in due time. While the Chiefs attempt to fix their sputtering offense, getting to 5-4 on the season is a big deal. In an AFC that seems to be growing less and less predictable by the week, Kansas City is right back in the thick of things. That doesn't apply to just a low playoff seed, either. The AFC West is still within reach. If Mahomes and company can continue to win close games while getting back to the drawing board on offense, it may save the Chiefs' season.
