LAS VEGAS — The Kansas City Chiefs’ organization has spoken about how their loss to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 16 served as a wake-up call for the rest of the season. The receiver group, in particular, had let down Patrick Mahomes with inconsistent routes and frustrating dropped passes on multiple occasions.
During that game, even Mahomes’ most trusted teammate, Travis Kelce, had two crucial drops. Both drops occurred on simple short passes, and although they didn’t directly end any drives since they were on first down, it would have been better if Kelce had caught them.
One drop happened with 11:21 remaining in the first quarter on a straightforward flat route…
…and the other occurred with 10:38 left in the game, potentially preventing a touchdown.
At that point, the Chiefs were trailing 20-7 and failed to score on the drive when Mahomes couldn’t connect with receiver Rashee Rice from the Las Vegas seven-yard line. Rice was covered tightly by cornerback Amik Robertson, but some argue that the rookie could have still made the catch.
These drops exemplified a significant issue that had plagued the Chiefs’ offense throughout the season. According to Fantasy Points Data, Mahomes had lost the most passing yards in the league due to receiver drops during the regular season, totaling 386 yards.
However, in the Chiefs’ three playoff games, Mahomes has only lost 40 passing yards due to drops. This indicates a positive change at the right time.
What caused this change?
Mahomes explained, “If you watch the receivers every single day, they’re practicing catches when the defense is up, they’re practicing after practice, and they’re practicing before practice. I remember one day I was walking to lunch, and Skyy [Moore] was out there catching by himself. These guys have the mindset to continuously improve. This mentality is present throughout the entire team. We’re not wasting any practice moments, guys are putting in extra work, and we won’t let that slide this week either. We’ll strive for the same dedication heading into the Super Bowl.”
Fortunately, the Chiefs’ performance is on an upward trend when it matters the most.
According to the Source touchdownwire.usatoday.com