Chiefs' leader still believes team can hit its stride
The Kansas City Chiefs suffered a 20-14 Christmas day upset loss to the Las Vegas Raiders. Kansas City's offense played perhaps its sloppiest game of the season, committing two turnovers which were both returned for a Raiders' touchdown. In addition to that, the same old problems persisted for the Chiefs' offense, including dropped passes, penalties, […]
The Kansas City Chiefs suffered a 20-14 Christmas day upset loss to the Las Vegas Raiders. Kansas City's offense played perhaps its sloppiest game of the season, committing two turnovers which were both returned for a Raiders' touchdown. In addition to that, the same old problems persisted for the Chiefs' offense, including dropped passes, penalties, and poor pass blocking.
With 15 games now in the books on the 2023 season, optimism about a turnaround is wearing thin. Teams usually are what they are by this point in the year, but it isn't impossible that the Chiefs could still get hot. The 2007 New York Giants lost two of their last three regular-season games but went on to win the Super Bowl over the undefeated New England Patriots. Likewise, the 2011 Green Bay Packers lost two of their last four games but won four road playoff games en route to Super Bowl glory.
The Chiefs have to turn the switch quickly if they're going to go to their second consecutive Super Bowl. Coach Andy Reid will have to cook up some of the best gameplans of his Hall of Fame career and they will have to be executed to near perfection. Nobody understands that more than quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who is keeping his optimism but also understands the reality of the situation.
"If we clean it up, we’ll be able to score points," Mahomes told reporters after the game. "It’s just we have to clean it up, I mean we’re two games left you have to do it and if we don’t, we’ll be going home. I think if we clean it up, we can beat anyone, I truly believe that but we have to prove that we can do it.”
Mahomes wasn't perfect on Sunday and has certainly had his struggles throughout the season. He has tied his career high in interceptions with 13 and is by far averaging his lowest number of yards per completion at 7.1 yards per clip. A big part of his struggles can be attributed to the lack of talent around him, which is easily the worst he's had to work with. When pass catchers are constantly running to the wrong spots, giving up on broken-down plays, and dropping passes, Mahomes understandably begins to press.
So where can Chiefs fans draw hope from? The answer starts with the man himself, Patrick Mahomes. Even if the numbers don't always reflect it, Mahomes is still very much an elite and MVP-worthy player. He covers a lot of deficiencies and has shown time and time again he can play at a level that no one else can during the postseason. However, that's going to sometimes mean reeling it in and playing it safe, even during times when the offense is in a rut. If the turnovers and penalties persist, K.C. will certainly be going home early as Mahomes said.
Chiefs HC Andy Reid confirms two starters on offense suffered injuries in Week 16
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