The Kansas City Chiefs won their 34-28 outing against the Denver Broncos in part because of Patrick Mahomes. But they almost lost the game because of him as well, and Mahomes is very much aware of it.
Against the Broncos, Mahomes had some magical plays. Take for example his 56-yard touchdown pass to running back Jerick McKinnon early in the second quarter in which he scrambled outside the pocket and underhanded the ball to McKinnon, who was wide open along Denver’s sideline.
On 3rd & 2, #Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes underhands it to RB Jerick McKinnon, who takes the pass 56 yards for the TD. PAT is good.
However, plays like that one were forgotten about quickly once Denver began a 21-0 run in the second quarter after Kansas City took a 27-0 lead. That run by the Broncos was in large part because of back-to-back drives by the Chiefs that ended in an interception thrown by Mahomes.
The offensive struggles continued for Kansas City in the second half as well, as Mahomes threw a fourth-quarter interception and the offense only scored 7 points in the final 30 minutes of play.
#Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes is intercepted on 2nd down by #Broncos LB Josey Jewell. #ChiefsKingdom
Luckily, a third-quarter touchdown by the Chiefs, an interception by Broncos backup quarterback Brett Rypien in the fourth quarter, and a strong run game by Kansas City helped run out the clock and obtain the victory for the Chiefs.
Mahomes Sounds Off on Poor Outing
Speaking to the media after the game, Mahomes reacted to his three-interception outing against the Broncos, whom the Chiefs play again in three weeks.
“Just three bad decisions,” Mahomes told the media on December 12 of his interceptions. “If you look at them — the first one I could have probably taken the easy throw on the outside and I tried to force it to (Travis) Kelce. The second one, I was really just trying to burn it. I mean, (Patrick Surtain II) made a hell of a play, I was trying to throw it away at someone’s feet. The third one was just bad just because of the situation. We’re in field goal range, especially here at altitude. No one was open, just throw the ball away and let Harrison (Butker) end the game.”
Despite the struggles at Mile High Stadium, Mahomes said the coaching staff was continuing to encourage the star quarterback to be aggressive.
“He tells me to keep throwing it, keep slinging it,” Mahomes said of Chiefs head coach Andy Reid. “He doesn’t want me to lose who I am. I promise you, I know when I’m messing up. When I go to the sideline, I’m hot. Those coaches come to me and they know that I know, but they still say what I can get better at. I just can’t put our team in that situation. Luckily we got the win, but you don’t win a lot of games when you have three interceptions.”
Twitter Reacts to Chiefs Victory Over Broncos
Twitter users reacted to Kansas City’s victory over Denver, which improves the team’s record to 10-3 on the season.
“Defense gave up 28 points to a team avg 10 pts a game lol. Can’t wait until the Spags (defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo) era is over with,” one Twitter user wrote.
@Chiefs Defense gave up 28 points to a team avg 10 pts a game lol. Can’t wait until the Spags era is over with.
“Chiefs make other teams play better!! We are the team that everyone wants to beat!! As long as they get the win is all that matters!!!” another user wrote.
@Chiefs @ShowMeYaTds7 Chiefs makes other teams play better!! We are the team that everyone wants to beat!! As long as they get the win is all that matters!!!
“Mahomes is looking like (Brett) Favre, can lose you the game just as easily as he can carry you to victory,” another user wrote. “Denver has a lifeless offense and Spags can’t help himself and blitz for no reason. Spags’ ego is a problem. Reid/Bieniemy refusing to run the ball in short distance.”
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Patrick Mahomes Sounds Off on 3-Interception Effort vs. Broncos