Old Media Foe Rips Chiefs After Bold Statement on Patrick Mahomes

Getty Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes II exiting the field in Week 14.

ESPN analyst Ryan Clark is no friend of Chiefs Kingdom.

Last season, the former NFL Pro Bowler first took shots at the Kansas City Chiefs defense, saying he’d un-retire to help them out. Later in the year, he targeted Patrick Mahomes II instead, calling him “broken” because of the quarterback’s continued mistakes at the time.

In 2022, Clark has changed his tone a bit, crediting Mahomes with just about all of the Chiefs’ success. This week, he and fellow ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky argued over KC’s Super Bowl chances after watching them in Denver and the conversation involved the superstar QB.

Ryan Clark Blasts Chiefs Defense, Backs Patrick Mahomes

Former NFL head coach Rex Ryan kicked off the segment of ESPN’s “Get Up” by stating that the “defense stinks” — and he called out the secondary specifically for allowing 28 passing touchdowns this year.

That’s where Orlovsky came in, shocking the entire panel completely by saying that he was “impressed” by the Chiefs victory over the Broncos. “Their multiple tight end use, their [ability] to run the football, Patrick played good besides two dumb decisions — or two silly kind of reckless decisions when they were up 27-0,” Orlovsky explained, highlighting Chris Jones, Mike Danna and Willie Gay as a few defensive pieces that caught his eye.

Clark couldn’t contain himself at this point, cutting off Orlovsky mid-sentence with a long-winded insult involving his wife picking him rather than Orlovsky choosing her — implying that he clearly has horrible taste.

“Because if you watched the Kansas City Chiefs yesterday and you say to yourself, you don’t see a problem, [you must have horrible taste],” Clark continued after the joke. “The quarterback has to do everything, everything! If the quarterback is not great, this team can’t win.”

Ryan seemed to agree, chiming in along the way. Clark’s argument went on though, blaming the secondary and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo for the most part.

“They can’t cover anybody!” Clark voiced. “And I know they have two rookies on the outside, but Steve Spagnuolo doesn’t help them at all! He don’t do nothing for them. He says we [are] going to let you go out there [on your own] — and this is the Denver Broncos [offense]… If Patrick Mahomes is not dang-near perfect, the Kansas City Chiefs can’t win the Super Bowl.”

Ryan agreed once again, adding later that KC won’t beat the Cincinnati Bengals or the Buffalo Bills in the playoffs with the defense operating like this. The former defensive-minded HC even implied that the Chiefs may not beat the Tennessee Titans if they were to face them a second time.

Dan Orlovsky Stands Firm on Chiefs Super Bowl Chances

Despite all of the arrows flying his way — including Clark’s unnecessary roast — Orlovsky didn’t back down during this debate.

“I see it the complete opposite [way],” he countered. “I actually think that this team is so much more, at least offensively complete, than they were last year. The multiple tight ends, [Isiah] Pacheco running the football — that is a big difference [right there]. They can run you out of shell [coverage], they can RPO [run-pass option] you out of shell, they can screen you out of shell.”

“Here’s my pushback with the defense,” Orlovsky continued. “I think Patrick put the defense in a bad situation [in Week 14] with his two turnovers, the screen [was] called perfectly by Denver because it hits against the pressure, but this offense is so good and has the ability to be so ball-control [oriented] and or explosive, defensively they’re sitting there going — we just want to create a takeaway or two and we’ll win the game. I think that’s their philosophy, but their defenses have always been this way.”

That last part is important. The Chiefs have won Super Bowls with defenses like this in the past, but things do have to sort of fall into place as is always the case.

If Mahomes plays really poorly, can the defense win a game on their own against top competition? Probably not, but that’s the advantage of having an MVP candidate at quarterback. Of course KC is going to rely on him to perform, and most Chiefs fans will trust Mahomes with the game on the line 10 times out of 10 — even if it’s a rollercoaster ride getting there.

It may not always be easy, but a streak of four straight AFC championship appearances speaks for itself.