Getty Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes II slings a pass against the Tennessee Titans.
You might not have realized that Patrick Mahomes II nearly broke an NFL record during the Kansas City Chiefs’ comeback victory over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday Night Football.
Mahomes’ 68 passing attempts were two shy of Drew Bledsoe’s magic number 70 — the most throws by a quarterback in a single game. Of course, that isn’t necessarily a good thing for the Chiefs.
The superstar QB is the franchise’s prized possession and priceless jewel. The goal is to have Mahomes play as long as Tom Brady so long as he’s up to the challenge but that may not happen if he’s slinging the ball around this much in every outing.
NFC Exec: Rest Patrick Mahomes ‘Like an MLB Pitcher’
During an article with The Athletic, senior writer Mike Sando voiced the thoughts of an NFC executive while explaining why Mahomes is leading the midseason MVP conversation.
“I’ll give [Mahomes] the edge over the Bills’ [Josh] Allen [in the MVP voting] for a few reasons,” Sando wrote. “The Chiefs’ offense has been more productive. Allen’s decision-making has suffered recently. Mahomes also has gotten far less support from his defense and special teams, making his contributions more valuable. Erasing that eight-point lead in the final minutes against Tennessee on Sunday night shifted the edge further toward Mahomes.”
Then Sando referenced the quote from the unnamed executive.
“I was on the phone with an exec from an NFC team when Kansas City called timeout before that pivotal fourth-and-1 from the Kansas City 45 with 5:17 left in overtime and the score tied,” Sando relayed. “‘Mahomes doesn’t have a hint of a running game, and they have to rest his arm like he’s an MLB pitcher — damn near 70 throws and he’s out there running around and it doesn’t even look stressful,’ the exec said.”
In the context of the article, this felt like more of a joke from the executive than a serious fear but it was enough of a concern to garner some attention. Bleacher Report contributor Joseph Zucker detailed why the Chiefs must be wary of this recent trend.
“Patrick Mahomes might look superhuman at times, but the Kansas City Chiefs are well aware their starting quarterback shouldn’t be pushed beyond his physical limits,” he stated, noting that his previous single-game high was only 54 passing attempts.
Zucker continued: “For the season, he has 331 attempts through eight starts, which averages out to just under 41.4 per game. If he continues at that pace, then he will reach third on the list for most pass attempts in one season (704).”
“Head coach Andy Reid and his staff know Mahomes can grow fatigued like any other player,” he eventually concluded. “Allowing him to heave 60-plus passes probably won’t be the norm going forward.”
Andy Reid Addresses Patrick Mahomes’ 68 Passes
After the game on November 6, Reid did speak on the lopsided offensive game plan in Week 9.
“We weren’t getting too far with the run game,” the Chiefs HC began, “so we felt we needed to throw it a little bit and I’ve seen [Mahomes] do that in college a few times.”
Based on the hint of a joke within Reid’s response, he doesn’t seem overly concerned about any arm fatigue that his quarterback may suffer from as the season goes on. Mahomes is a gunslinger with a strong arm and the Chiefs might have to lean on it from time to time.
Having said that, the rushing attack is somewhat concerning. KC has only managed 613 rushing yards combined when you tally up the numbers of their current half-back trio — Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Isiah Pacheco, and Jerick McKinnon. In a run-heavy offense, Titans star Derrick Henry has 870 yards rushing on his own.
There’s no denying that it doesn’t take much for Reid and offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy to become pass-happy, but more early success on the ground would help convince them to stick with the run.
Edwards-Helaire is averaging 4.2 yards per carry with 36.6 yards per game. Pacheco’s clip is slightly better at 4.5 YPC with only 24.6 YPG. McKinnon is the pass-catcher of the group, pulling up the rear in production on the ground.
Kansas City also has a fresh runner in Ronald Jones II that is still on the roster. It’ll be interesting to see if the Chiefs make any effort to balance out the offense in Week 10 and beyond.