After the Kansas City Chiefs went up 17-0 in the first quarter, I had visions of a blowout. However, mistakes by Patrick Mahomes, another struggling effort by the tackles, and Jets Quarterback, Zach Wilson played his tail off after a rough start. In the end, it was the legs of Mahomes that sealed the 23-20 victory after holding the ball over the last 7:23 of the fourth quarter.
Sometimes Superman loses one of his powers. For Kansas City Chiefs Quarterback, Patrick Mahomes after a stellar first quarter that gave his team a 17-0 lead, his red cape let him down. For whatever reason, Mahomes could not get the passing game to work for the remainder of the game. He ended up with a passer rating of 63.6 and completed just 18 of 30 passes with a touchdown and two ugly interceptions.
Yet in the fourth quarter after the Chiefs defense forced a turnover by Zach Wilson, Mahomes used his Superman legs to scramble his team out of trouble. Facing a third and 22, Mahomes 25-yard scamper deflated the Jet’s defense and ended up being the biggest play of that drive. Mahomes legs came into play because the crumbling pocket that plagued him most of the game forced him to run. He also got a big lift from Isaih Pacheco, who led the team with 115 yards rushing, which was just enough to win the game.
Once again the Chiefs defense came to play Sunday night. After the Jets opened the second half with a picture-perfect 75-yard touchdown drive to tie the score at 20-20, they held New York scoreless the rest of the way. In fact, they never really threatened to score again.
Overall it’s a gritty win and you never make excuses when you score more points than your opponents. The main issue I have, outside of some questionable calls by the officiating crew, who were atrocious all night, the Jets got some good calls and bounces that allowed their comeback. Wilson played the best he could but Mahomes was just better.
The Chiefs should feel lucky they found a way to get the win, but they have some items they need to fix this week. For the most part, the wide receivers failed to get any separation and it caused Mahomes to rely on Kelce too much. When the Jets shut him down the receivers just didn’t do anything to help Mahomes extend drives.
The problem for Head Coach Andy Reid will be the patience he gives his young receivers to develop. They need to get better as a unit, but the cost of their learning curve forces Reid to adjust his game plan, and the offensive line isn’t giving Mahomes time in the pocket. That combination won’t be easy to fix on the fly, but that’s why he’s a Hall of Fame coach.
On the flip side, once again in crunch time, the defense showed up. Chris Jones had another sack and his pressure on Wilson in the second half without any sacks was vital to shutting them down after their opening drive. Further, they deserve credit because they were gassed until the game-changing turnover in the fourth quarter. Steve Spagnuolo also changed his approach in the second half, and he applied far more pressure on Wilson which clearly was the difference in the game.
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