{"id":299803,"date":"2025-11-18T20:46:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-18T20:46:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/299803\/"},"modified":"2025-11-18T20:46:10","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T20:46:10","slug":"patrick-mahomes-showed-raw-honesty-after-chiefs-loss-heres-what-frustrated-him-most","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/299803\/","title":{"rendered":"Patrick Mahomes showed raw honesty after Chiefs\u2019 loss. Here\u2019s what frustrated him most"},"content":{"rendered":"

DENVER \u2014 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes faced his locker while staring toward the ground, a white towel wrapped over his head as he stood and scrolled through his phone.<\/p>\n

This was about a half-hour after the Chiefs\u2019 22-19 road loss<\/a> to the Denver Broncos, and Mahomes was left alone with his thoughts.<\/p>\n

The QB\u2019s corner locker was closest to the exit, meaning he had all sorts of space surrounding him without others around. At one point, third-string quarterback Chris Oladokun \u2014 seeing Mahomes\u2019 body language \u2014 made his way over to dap him up, working to lift his spirits just for a few seconds.<\/p>\n

Right after that, Mahomes\u2019 eyes dropped again, with his team\u2019s new reality setting in.<\/p>\n

The Chiefs are 5-5. They\u2019ve lost almost all chance to win the AFC West \u2014 all at a date before Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n

And, as he\u2019d later reveal, one thing in particular ate at him most after the Chiefs\u2019 defeat Sunday against their divisional rivals.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust having an opportunity at the end of the game,\u201d Mahomes said later at his postgame news conference, \u201cand not coming through.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mahomes entered the week highlighting the importance of this matchup. He knew how critical this game was if the Chiefs wanted to extend a string of nine AFC West titles. He also acknowledged, after the team\u2019s last loss to the Buffalo Bills, that he needed to be better at sticking to his progressions and not getting away from his reads too soon.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s why, with raw honesty during his media session, Mahomes shared he was most frustrated with one thing after Sunday\u2019s loss-from-ahead setback against the Broncos:<\/p>\n

Himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe haven\u2019t been consistent enough to win football games,\u201d Mahomes said, \u201cbut it starts with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

He had an example ready, too.<\/p>\n

The Chiefs got the ball back with the score tied at 19 with 4:05 left in the fourth quarter \u2014 a scenario in which Mahomes has come through seemingly as often as any quarterback in recent history.<\/p>\n

On first down, though, he said he messed up. He noticed a shift in one of Denver\u2019s safeties presnap, which meant receiver Hollywood Brown would have a chance to come open on a deeper route.<\/p>\n

Mahomes didn\u2019t trust it, though \u2014 or his offensive line\u2019s protection. He abandoned his progression, throwing a quick pass to tight end Travis Kelce that was knocked away.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s things here and there (to regret), but I think that\u2019s the biggest one,\u201d Mahomes said.<\/p>\n

Listen close enough, and this was the first instance of Mahomes sharing just how frustrated he was with himself during his six-minute mea culpa session.<\/p>\n

Three times, while standing in front of reporters, he started talking about what \u201cwe\u201d needed to do better when referring to the Chiefs.<\/p>\n

Each time, though, he paused and corrected his pronoun to \u201cI.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe just \u2026 I didn\u2019t find it there,\u201d Mahomes said, referring to that first-down play.<\/p>\n

Though he knows it sounds cliche, Mahomes said that the miss on first down was a big deal. From experience, he\u2019s come to realize that getting an initial first down on a drive is a momentum shifter, typically giving the offense some rhythm while also taking some aggressiveness away from the defense.<\/p>\n

The Broncos gained the edge from there. They pressured Mahomes on second down to force a throwaway, then caught him on a blitz to sack him on third-and-10.<\/p>\n

Mahomes wouldn\u2019t see the ball again after that, as the Broncos marched for their game-winning field-goal drive while leaving no time left.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt sucks. Don\u2019t get me wrong. You\u2019ve got to feel that,\u201d Mahomes said. \u201cBut you\u2019ve got to be able to use that energy to push it into the next week and into the rest of the season.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chiefs certainly need to summon whatever motivational forces they have left for the final seven regular-season games.<\/p>\n

At 5-5, they are no longer a shoo-in to make the playoffs. The Athletic\u2019s playoff simulator<\/a>, in fact, currently has the Chiefs with a 57 percent chance of making the postseason.<\/p>\n

Part of the reason for that is a result that went against them Sunday. The Jacksonville Jaguars, who have a head-to-head tiebreaker over the Chiefs thanks to their Week 5 win, defeated the Los Angeles Chargers to improve to 6-4. That means K.C., essentially, is now two games behind Jacksonville for the seventh and final seed in the AFC playoffs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis moment right here is very pivotal for us as a team to make sure we come (together) as a cohesive unit,\u201d Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones said. \u201cIt\u2019s so easy to point fingers, especially after a loss, especially when you have so many expectations from everybody else. But most importantly, it\u2019s about what matters in the building and amongst each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rest of a spacious Chiefs dressing room was mostly quiet afterward. Kelce declined an interview request. Receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, meanwhile, said the biggest emphasis next week would be on small details and sticking together.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we become closer than ever,\u201d Smith-Schuster said, \u201cin a time like this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mahomes won\u2019t shy away from this truth, though: He must be better if the Chiefs want to make this late-season run.<\/p>\n

Three weeks ago, he ascended to NFL MVP favorite while quick-firing passes all across the field in dominant performances against the Detroit Lions, Las Vegas Raiders and Washington Commanders.<\/p>\n

And while the Chiefs still have \u2014 statistically \u2014 one of the NFL\u2019s most efficient offenses, the timing has been off this season. Sunday\u2019s loss dropped them to 0-5 in games decided by seven points or fewer, with the Chiefs faltering in those same moments they excelled in in past seasons.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s about being more consistent,\u201d Mahomes said. \u201cThat\u2019s what this league is.\u201d<\/p>\n

And though he doesn\u2019t do this often, Mahomes reset the goal posts after this particular letdown.<\/p>\n

Chiefs coach Andy Reid has always preached the significance of winning the AFC West to set up a postseason run. That\u2019s the team\u2019s first stated objective.<\/p>\n

Reality has changed things, though. Mahomes acknowledged Sunday night that \u201cobviously it\u2019s going to be tough\u201d to get back into the division race while trailing the Broncos by 3 1\/2 games with seven remaining.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut at the end of the day, the goal is to get in the playoffs and try to make a run at it,\u201d Mahomes said. \u201cAll you can focus on is next week.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chiefs will do that, with the 8-2 Indianapolis Colts coming to Arrowhead Stadium to face an even more desperate home team Sunday.<\/p>\n

K.C.\u2019s underlying numbers suggest it will be favored in that game \u2014 and the rest of the games on their slate.<\/p>\n

But at some point, those projected numbers need to translate into counts-in-the-standings results.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we have the pieces to win out,\u201d Jones said. \u201cBut it starts with one game. It starts with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read between the lines with Mahomes\u2019 words, and he also delivered a strong message after Sunday\u2019s emotional defeat.<\/p>\n

If the Chiefs are going to turn their season around from here on, he believes it has to start with him.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou want to get that opportunity at the end of the game,\u201d Mahomes said, \u201cand we didn\u2019t \u2026 I didn\u2019t come through.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DENVER \u2014 Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes faced his locker while staring toward the ground, a white…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":299804,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[63],"tags":[1236,349,99],"class_list":["post-299803","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl","tag-kansas-city-chiefs","tag-nfl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299803","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=299803"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299803\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/299804"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=299803"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=299803"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=299803"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}