The Kansas City Chiefs didn’t seem to enjoy their last-second victory over Carolina on Sunday.
Patrick Mahomes appeared calm after fill-in kicker Spencer Shrader’s field goal secured the 30-27 win. Travis Kelce, Chris Jones, and the rest of the team simply walked from the sideline to midfield for handshakes before heading to the locker room, which was a stark contrast to the excitement they usually show after close wins.
This could be because they are tired of the stress in these tight games. Kansas City has now won 12 straight games decided by seven points or fewer, which is the longest streak in NFL history, and has won five games that were decided on the last play this season.
It could also be because the Chiefs felt they should have won by a bigger margin. They committed 10 penalties for 91 yards, their secondary struggled against Panthers quarterback Bryce Young, who has been improving lately, and their offensive tackles were repeatedly beaten, with Mahomes being sacked five times.
“You always want to have some blowouts. You want to be a little calmer in the fourth quarter,” said Mahomes, who had one of his best performances despite the challenges, throwing for 269 yards and three touchdowns without an interception.
“It can be a good thing as you get to the playoffs and later in the season,” Mahomes added. “Just knowing you’ve been in those moments before, and knowing how to handle it play by play— not making it too big of a moment. I will say this more than anybody, I would love to win a game not by the very last play.”
Despite their struggles, the Chiefs (10-1) stayed one game ahead of the Buffalo Bills in the race for the No. 1 seed in the AFC, going into their Friday game against the Raiders. However, with the Bills holding the tiebreaker, there is no room for error.
“It’s all about getting better. That’s the best thing about playing in the NFL,” Mahomes said. “We’ve got to just go back, learn from (Carolina), and know we have a short week against a hungry football team in the Raiders that’s coming to our house.”
