Patrick Mahomes confidently reassured Andy Reid that he would come up clutch for the Chiefs in the dying minutes against the Chargers – before doing exactly that.
Kansas City wrapped up the AFC West title on Sunday after a last-gasp kick from Matthew Wright clanked in off the upright to earn them a dramatic 19-17 victory at home to Los Angeles.
It was the latest great escape for the back-to-back Super Bowl champions in a season which has included plenty of nail-biting wins, and they had Mahomes largely to thank for this one.
Trailing 17-16, the superstar Chiefs quarterback began his final drive with consecutive incompletions to Isiah Pacheco, before bouncing back with a short pass over the middle that Xavier Worthy converted into a first down.
Two plays later, coming out of the two-minute warning, he had the ball on third down at the Chargers’ 20-yard line as the hosts looked to run down the clock and kick a potential walk-off field goal. Yet instead of running the ball the Chiefs surprisingly opted to call a pass play.
And according to The Athletic, it was Mahomes who decided to call that play after telling head coach Reid moments before the snap: ‘I’ll make something happen.’
Patrick Mahomes came up clutch for the Chiefs late on in their victory over the Chargers
The Kansas City QB had told coach Andy Reid (left) that he would ‘make something happen’
Mahomes. Kelce. FIRST DOWN.
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As he has done so frequently over the years, the three-time Super Bowl winner then produced a clutch moment for Kansas City just like he said after escaping the Chargers’ pass rush and picking out Travis Kelce for a vital nine-yard gain and fresh set of downs.
LA didn’t see the ball again after that play, before Wright went on to kick the walk-off field goal – albeit with some help from the upright.
It was another moment of magic from Mahomes, who finished the night with 24 of his 37 passes completed for 210 yards and a touchdown.
However, like opposite number Justin Herbert he was sacked on three occasions amid intense pressure at Arrowhead.
Mahomes said after clinching their divisional title in dramatic fashion: ‘It’s our first goal every single year, to win the AFC West. It’s a great division [with] a lot of rivalries where everybody’s playing each other tough and, I mean, three teams are going to probably make the playoffs. That speaks to the division we play in.
‘To be able to win this division, to gain another game in the playoff picture, it was an important game for us against a really good football team.
‘We found a way to get a win, but now we’ve got to keep building if we want to get to our ultimate goal.’
