Patrick Mahomes: Game Manager

[DJ's left nut]

So i re-watched the 2nd half last night just for grins.

And during the game I was just aggravated that we simply wouldn't push the ball. But on re-watch and after listening to the post-game, it's clear that this was Mahomes just going full Alex Smith out there.

He wasn't concerned anymore about scoring points. He (and Andy) were wholly content bleeding clock and leaning on their lead. He knew that if he just didn't make a mistake, the Ravens weren't going to come back and win it. So he took ZERO risks.

Contrast that with how he played on the first two drives. And hell, the throw he made on 3rd down when they had to have it. He HAD big plays. He HAD yards and probably points on the board. But he dialed that risk/reward calculus waaaaaaay down because he wanted to make sure there were zero mistakes.

And I think part of it was because he knew that if he needed to pick things back up, he could. He would. He was in complete command of the game and game script.

It was part of a continued evolution from Mahomes. If he needs to breath fire, he will. But when he doesn't need to, he knows how to just keep the game under control. He can be Rodgers OR he can be Brady.

He's a scary scary dude even when he isn't.

[IowaHawkeyeChief]

Originally Posted by duncan_idaho

No, I disagree drastically. Smith took a full run and absolutely DRILLED a stationary player on purpose. They have to protect offensive linemen there.


Again, disagree. Van Noy came running in AFTER the officials began separating players, and head butted Kelce in the helmet.



In all, the officiating crew missed some big things on both ends. You can point to 6 points and a possession off the board for the Chiefs and make a good case the bad holding calls and missed tripping penalty were more impactful than anything that went the Chiefs' way.

Take away either of the holds on Smith and the Chiefs go into halftime up 21-7. Call the trip in the end zone and give KC a safety to go up 19-7 with the ball and about 10 minutes left in the game. At BEST for Baltimore, the Chiefs kill about 2.5 minutes of clock in that spot. But considering KC probably starts with a little better field position (say, the 37 instead of the 25) and only needs about 25-30 yards to get into make-able FG range, it could have been a lot worse.

The one illegal contact/hold they say they missed on Likely was the right call as it happened before Lamar threw it and he was outside of the pocket which negates holding or illegal contact.

[Mecca]

Originally Posted by Jerm

I think it's hilarious he's had to be in person broadcasting our run as he clearly roots against us....and now he'll have to watch and commentate us winning another Lombardi.

Which is also funny because anyone who isn't a Chiefs fan thinks he roots for the Chiefs and can't stop sucking off Mahomes.

How can you both love and hate the same team, what?

[JPH83]

Originally Posted by DanT

For what it's worth, on today's episode of Schein on Sports, Phil Simms praised Mahomes's ability to manage the game in the second half, calling it deliberate and difficult to do and noting that Mahomes was making sure to burn clock and avoid moderate risk and higher throws because they weren't in the Chiefs interest.
The deal with Mahomes is that everyone knows that he can make whatever throw he needs to make. He's not a traditional game-manager in the way that term is used derisively. Even when he's playing "safe" he is putting pressure on opponents and forcing errors from them.

Not sure what show it is but Simms explaining to Florio Mahomes' greatness was beautiful to watch. Florio looked like he was at a funeral.

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by Pasta Little Brioni

I disagree a bit. It's a whole different gane if Zay doesn't fumble. We had PLENTY of chances to grow a good lead and just kept farting around. Reminded me of the Eagles game but Lamar simply wouldn't accept the gifted win.

Yeah it was not a great gameplan. The game manager part is coming from the sidelines not form Pat. Sure Pat executes it but we were quite fortunate Flowers fumbles on the goal line. There is no doubt in my mind that if we played as aggressive in the first half we score 2 TD in second half. It isnt about the amount of the points its about putting the game away so that if something flukey or unlucky does happen you still win the game. They better be ready to score against SF.

[DJ's left nut]

I was worried when I saw Bwillie post that he would agree with me.

Nope - had to make sure he got in here to say something stupid again.

Fantastic - bwillie disagreeing with me tells me I'm on the right track.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by Gary Cooper

Chris Jones was tripped in the end zone when the Ravens were on their own 1-yard line. Pretty blatant. I believe it was their last drive. Should have been called a safety.

I was yelling for that to be a safety. It was really, really obvious.

But here's a twist. As of 2023, that's a personal foul. Is a personal foul in the end zone a safety? I'm not sure.

Also, I think it was clearly a leg whip and not a trip. The running back threw his leg up, per this clip: https://www.reddit.com/r/nfl/comment..._on_this_play/

Now, it seems like the rules don't really distinguish between a trip and a leg whip. I thought there used to be a difference. But regardless of that, as a result of #43's intentional leg whip, Chris Jones was injured, but by the grace of the benevolent football gods it was not serious and he was able to come back into the game. But per the rules, if the leg whip was done with the intent to injure a player, the offender can be ejected from the game. That skanky pile of feces with the #43 jersey clearly could have attempted to block Chris, but he instead elected to throw his leg into Chris's knee/thigh. He should have been ejected, and he should face a fine this week as well. Dirty cheater.

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

I was worried when I saw Bwillie post that he would agree with me.

Nope - had to make sure he got in here to say something stupid again.

Fantastic - bwillie disagreeing with me tells me I'm on the right track.

BWillie is always wrong except that hes almost never wrong!

[Rausch]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I was yelling for that to be a safety. It was really, really obvious.

But here's a twist. As of 2023, that's a personal foul. Is a personal foul in the end zone a safety? I'm not sure.

Also, I think it was clearly a leg whip and not a trip. The running back threw his leg up, per this clip: https://www.reddit.com/r/nfl/comment..._on_this_play/

Now, it seems like the rules don't really distinguish between a trip and a leg whip. I thought there used to be a difference. But regardless of that, as a result of #43's intentional leg whip, Chris Jones was injured, but by the grace of the benevolent football gods it was not serious and he was able to come back into the game. But per the rules, if the leg whip was done with the intent to injure a player, the offender can be ejected from the game. That skanky pile of feces with the #43 jersey clearly could have attempted to block Chris, but he instead elected to throw his leg into Chris's knee/thigh. He should have been ejected, and he should face a fine this week as well. Dirty cheater.

I'm satisfied with the penalty of them losing the game.
About as strict as you can get...

[philfree]

Originally Posted by petegz28

Romo also said we made a mistake deferring the kickoff...

LOL Romo has done how many Chiefs games at this point? We always defer so he is a proven dumbass. He's the guy that dropped the snap on a FG and he cost his team the game. That's who he is.

[irafreak]

I'm twelve pages late but this is exactly what I saw too. Start of the 3rd quarter, only thought in my mind was...just don't let them back in the game with a turnover.

I had zero doubt that we would see first half offense if we needed to open it up again. Pat and kelce were on fire and those windows were tight. We weren't scheming guys wide open like in Buffalo. We had to be aggressive to get that lead. The plan was to put the pressure on Baltimore and watch them crumble. It worked.

[petegz28]

Originally Posted by BWillie

Yeah it was not a great gameplan. The game manager part is coming from the sidelines not form Pat. Sure Pat executes it but we were quite fortunate Flowers fumbles on the goal line. There is no doubt in my mind that if we played as aggressive in the first half we score 2 TD in second half. It isnt about the amount of the points its about putting the game away so that if something flukey or unlucky does happen you still win the game. They better be ready to score against SF.

Maybe you should apply for a coaching position?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Rausch]

Originally Posted by irafreak

We had to be aggressive to get that lead. The plan was to put the pressure on Baltimore and watch them crumble. It worked.

Everyone knew it, most commented on it before the game, and the coaches implemented it. It was that ****ing obvious. Even our dumb asses saw the writing on the wall.

Lamar defenders just can't come to accept it for some reason...

[gold_and_red]

This game was not just about Mahomes managing the second half but also about the team playing hardnosed and physical. The AFCN always thought they were special with their street fight style.

Teams like KC were seen as finesse, speedy and relying too much on scheme. The Ravens thought they were bullying such a team with all the pre-game antics and in-game chirpiness. Look who is planning for Cancun.

[Buehler445]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Lamar choked.

The interception was a choke. The 2 or 3 balls he had guys on that he simply missed the throw on was a choke.

He didn't play at the level he'd played at all season. It's a textbook choke.

That end zone pick was one of the worst decisions I've ever seen in the playoffs. Sometimes guys get baited or the scheme is just excellent. Not this time, that was just ****ing double coverage with a guy reading the routes. When he released it, it was obvious it was triple coverage.

He biffed that one in a giant way. That one is inexcusable.

[DRM08]

I like it when Mahomes is laser focused on avoiding turnovers. He has been very sharp in all 3 Playoff games. Hopefully he can do it again in the Super Bowl.