Overlooking Patrick Mahomes was an enormous mistake.
The Buffalo Bills have been the preseason Super Bowl chalk with Las Vegas sportsbooks, even after they misplaced to Kansas City in final yr’s playoffs.
The L.A. Chargers have been the media darlings of a stacked AFC West that was speculated to humble Andy Reid, Mahomes and a fading Chiefs workforce that misplaced Tyrann Mathieu and Tyreek Hill.
Russell Wilson bought traded to the Denver Broncos. Davante Adams grew to become a Las Vegas Raider.
The Chiefs’ run of 4 straight AFC Championship Game appearances, with two Super Bowl appearances and one championship, is over. Right?
Wrong. The Chiefs are already 2-0, outscoring their opponents 71-45, with a Thursday Night division win over Justin Herbert’s Chargers right here in Week 2.
And making Mahomes an underdog was a foul concept.
“I always feel like I have something to prove,” Mahomes stated after the Chiefs’ 44-21 thrashing of the Arizona Cardinals. “I’m just this guy from Texas Tech that they said couldn’t play in the NFL. So I always have that mindset of going out there and proving that we’re the Kansas City Chiefs and we still have a chance to go out there and win the AFC championship and win the AFC West and win the Super Bowl.”
This is to not decrease what Josh Allen’s Bills did to the reigning champion L.A. Rams within the NFL season opener. Buffalo positively has the firepower to compete with Kansas City, as they demonstrated in that 42-36 time beyond regulation divisional playoff loss in January.
Mahomes and the Chiefs benefited from some horrible officiating Thursday evening that robbed the Chargers of two interceptions, too. And Kansas City’s secondary on protection is younger and suspect.
But Mahomes’ expertise is sufficient to maintain profitable, together with the teaching of Reid and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. And including a chip to the previous MVP’s shoulder offers him one more reason to unleash contemporary firepower on the league.
Mahomes obtained a confusingly low grade from Pro Football Focus in Week 1, for instance, after finishing 30 of 39 passes for 360 yards and 5 TDs in opposition to the Cardinals.
So on Thursday, after beating the Chargers, Mahomes cracked about one in every of his close to interceptions: “I’m sure PFF will have me at a low grade for that, but I’ll keep it rolling.”
PFF returned with these numbers after the Chiefs beat the Chargers: Mahomes is 21 of 32 in opposition to the blitz this season for 231 yards, six TD passes and no interceptions. He is 12 of 13 out of the pocket for 121 yards and three TDs.
“A couple of those throws were unbelievable,” Reid stated of his quarterback’s 24 of 35 passing for 235 yards and two TDs in opposition to the Chargers. “Pushing up and throwing through traffic and getting his body in the right position… It was impressive. And I know he works … He’s relentless with that stuff. He always wants to know what he can do to be better.”
Relentless is an effective method to describe Mahomes’ angle now in his fifth full season as a starter. He’s out to remind everybody who he’s, who the Chiefs are – they’re the workforce you have been unwise to miss.
STALEY SUDDENLY PLAYS IT SAFE
Aggressive, analytics-driven Chargers coach Brandon Staley unexpectedly morphed on Thursday into an alarmingly conservative sport supervisor in opposition to the Chiefs.
Staley, whose calling card as a rookie coach was his aggressive go-for-it calls on fourth down, kicked an early discipline purpose on 4th and a pair of from the Chiefs’ 13-yard line. And he punted twice within the first half on 4th and a pair of from the Chiefs’ 47- and 48-yard strains, respectively.
It seems Staley’s failed fourth down calls in late season losses to the Chiefs and Raiders led to a dramatic shift in strategy in his second yr.
Look no additional than Staley’s unrecognizable rationalization for his technique: discipline place.
“Just wanted to give our defense a chance to compete,” he stated. “I really loved the way we were playing. I felt like we were aggressive when we needed to be. We converted all four of our fourth downs. Just felt like with who’s over there and the way our defense was playing, I felt like the field position would be a big edge for our defense. To be able to pin them back there. And I like the way our defense competed tonight.”
Staley went for 34 of 108 fourth downs (31.5%, league excessive) final season and succeeded 64.7% of the time (fourth finest). So listening to him converse this manner was onerous to imagine.
The Chargers did convert a 4th and 1 Austin Ekeler run on the Chiefs’ 18 within the third quarter, resulting in a Mike Williams landing on the subsequent play. So perhaps Staley will have the ability to discover a center floor quite than abandoning his ideas.
SHAMELESS BRETT
Newly launched textual content messages present that Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre could have been extra concerned than beforehand recognized in funneling thousands and thousands of federal welfare {dollars} to pay for a brand new volleyball facility on the University of Southern Mississippi, the place his daughter performed the game, a lawsuit alleges.
The messages present that former Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant was conscious of the association and even guided Favre on easy methods to submit a funding proposal. The textual content messages don’t set up that Favre knew the funds have been welfare cash however clearly point out he was conscious of some impropriety.
“If you were to pay me is there anyway the media can find out where it came from and how much?” Favre allegedly texted Nancy New, the chief director of the schooling middle by which the funds have been funneled.
The cash was initially supposed to assist low-income households within the poorest state within the nation. Favre denied any wrongdoing up to now.
NFL ECSTATIC OVER OPENING WEEKEND
Pro sports activities leagues love parity. The NFL isn’t any totally different. The league had seven video games determined by a discipline purpose or much less in Week 1, probably the most on a kickoff weekend in NFL historical past. Five video games have been determined by a rating within the ultimate two minutes or time beyond regulation — probably the most in a Week 1 in 20 years. Eight groups gained video games with quarterbacks beneath 27 years previous, the second most ever to open a season. And the NFL had greater than 121 million viewers, up 5% from final yr and one of the best opening weekend since 2016. The most watched sport was the Cowboys-Bucs Sunday evening sport, which drew 23.3 million. … The league says the “guardian caps” worn over helmets by gamers as much as the second preseason sport had a optimistic impression on limiting concussions. The NFL stated its common variety of 23 concussions in that interval decreased to 11 among the many place teams who have been required to put on the caps (O-line, D-line, tight ends and linebackers). And six of these 11 have been decided as brought on by blows to face masks, to not a participant’s helmet. More than 200 gamers continued carrying the caps after the mandated interval was over, as nicely.
AROUND THE LEAGUE: STEELERS LOSE WATT
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ Week 1 upset of the Cincinnati Bengals was dampened in an enormous means by the lack of star cross rusher T.J. Watt. A torn pectoral muscle has the reigning NFL defensive participant of the yr out for at the least six weeks, if no more. So it’s onerous to see the Steelers, with Mitchell Trubisky at quarterback, dethroning the Bengals within the AFC North even after beating them face to face within the opener. … Jets coach Robert Saleh can’t say what he stated on ESPN Radio, that the Jets have been “worse than an expansion team” when Joe Douglas arrived as GM. Even if it’s true, it fires too many pictures at individuals each inside and out of doors Saleh’s constructing. The Jets’ main drawback, just like the Giants’ and different perennial losers of late, goes means above any GM or head coach. But Saleh places a goal on his again when he talks that means. And if the shedding spirals, it’s going to assist flip him into the subsequent scapegoat, whereas the actual drawback goes unaddressed. … Cooper Rush is quarterbacking the Dallas Cowboys in opposition to Joe Burrow’s reigning AFC Champion Bengals this Sunday with Dak Prescott injured and out at the least a number of weeks. It’s attainable the Giants could possibly be internet hosting an 0-2 Cowboys workforce on Monday Night Football in Week 3.
THEY SAID IT
“He didn’t urinate down his leg, man. That’s a great place to begin.” — Steelers coach Mike Tomlin on rookie operating again Jaylen Warren’s NFL debut.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com