If you expect Patrick Mahomes to throw his wide receivers under the bus, well you might have the wrong idea of who the Kansas City Chiefs star quarterback is.
The 7-3 Chiefs fell to the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night in a 21-17 rain-soaked affair, which saw Kansas City get shutout in the second half. Teams are keying in on Travis Kelce, which has opened up more opportunities for the Chiefs’ wide receivers, who now lead the league with 26 drops on the season.
One of the drops affected the outcome of Monday’s game. Marquez Valdes-Scantling had what would be the go-ahead touchdown hit him right in the hands, only to drop a perfectly thrown pass, which would have likely given Kansas City a 3-point lead with just under two minutes remaining.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling can't quite come up from this bomb from Patrick Mahomes.
Chiefs were that close to pulling out a late victory over the Eagles. pic.twitter.com/7xlkXd146k
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) November 21, 2023
Mahomes shouldered the blame, electing not to criticize his wideouts, despite being asked multiple times about their critical drops.
“They triple-teamed Travis [Kelce] so I went to the guy that won downfield and Marquez won. He just didn’t come away with the ball. I could probably have thrown it a little shorter, he was that open,” Mahomes said, via NBC Sports’ Pro Football Talk.
For better or worse, this is what a leader does.
“They know I’m gonna keep firing it,” Mahomes said. “Usually they’re going to make the plays. It happens.”
They’re going to need to make plays sooner or later, otherwise, Kansas City’s hopes of winning back-to-back Super Bowls look pretty bleak.
[PFT]