Patrick Mahomes critical of play to start season; explains Travis Kelce's slow start
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Yes, the Kansas City Chiefs are 3-0, but it's not in the typical fashion you'd expect.
The Chiefs have won all of their games to start the season despite less than ideal starts from their franchise cornerstones Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.
Mahomes has gotten off to the worst start of his career. He currently has five touchdowns, four interceptions and has thrown a pick in every game.
He was critical of his play after the Chiefs win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday night.
"We haven't played good, I mean really all three games. We've been able to win. That speaks to the character of the team, the grit, how we've been in these situations before," Mahomes said.
"I feel like I haven't played very well. And that's not a stats thing, I just feel like I'm missing opportunities whenever they're out there and not throwing the ball in the exact spot I want it to be at. It's about me getting back to my fundamentals."
Mahomes, who is one of the best arm talents the NFL has ever seen, stated he has been too reliant upon that talent, causing him to drift away from his mechanics, something that can occasionally happen throughout the season. He talked about how he can improve upon that.
"I think just footwork stuff. I gotta get my base right. I think I'm trusting my arm too much on some of those throws," Mahomes said. "I gotta get back to my fundamentals, and that's stuff that I go through sometimes—not usually early in the season like this—but luckily for me, I'm not playing my best football and we're still getting wins, but I gotta get better to make the offense better."
Kelce is off to the slowest start since his rookie season. While the 34-year-old tight end is on the backend of his career, he showed he still has something left in the tank last postseason.
So far, he has three receptions for 69 yards and zero touchdowns. Mahomes explained why him and Kelce haven't had their usual connection.
"The respect factor [teams] have for Travis is just unreal. We're calling a lot of plays for Travis and it's like two or three people are going to him.
"He understands. That's the great thing about him, is he wants to make an impact on the game but he wants to win at the end of the day. I'm gonna try my best to keep feeding him the ball whenever he's there and whenever he's open. I think the more Rashee [Rice] makes plays, the more we're able to run the football, the more we can get [Xavier] Worthy involved, I think that's gonna open Travis up more. People are really emphasizing trying to take him away."
Rice has been the best player on the Chiefs offense to start the season. He finished the game against the Falcons with a career-high 12 receptions for 110 yards and a touchdown.
For Mahomes and Kelce, their starts shouldn't be much of a cause for concern considering their track record and the Chiefs being able to still win football games.
It seems more of an eventuality rather than an uncertainty as to when their play will start to reach the level many are accustomed to.
The Chiefs will have their first divisional matchup this Sunday, when they head to LA to face the Chargers at 3:25 p.m.