Patrick Mahomes breaks Len Dawson’s Chiefs record in first half of Cardinals game
It took Patrick Mahomes all of 56 seconds to tie Len Dawson’s 1964 franchise record Sunday afternoon.
AImost two quarters later, he broke it with his second touchdown pass to Tyreek Hill, this one a 14-yard completion for his 31st touchdown strike of the season. The Chiefs defeated the Arizona Cardinals 26-14.
“That is something I’d do on Madden,” Hill said of Mahomes throwing 31 touchdowns this season. “For him to come in and do that, that’s amazing. A lot of people doubted him saying he wasn’t going to do this or wasn’t going to do that. He is shutting a lot of people up right now and I’m proud of him. He’s just got to continue to move forward and stay humble.”
Because of a family emergency, Mahomes wasn’t available to talk after the game.
The first pass, a 37-yard strike to Hill down the middle of the field, was Mahomes’ 30th touchdown throw this season. It took him just three plays to get into the end zone, connecting with Hill for a 38-yard completion on the first play. The next was an incomplete pass to Hill, followed by the touchdown throw.
The second score took a bit longer as Mahomes and Co. stalled out in the red zone on their second drive. It started out promising enough, beginning on Arizona’s 38-yard line thanks to a failed onside kick attempt by the Cardinals.
But it came to a halt around the 16-yard line as Kareem Hunt was tackled for a two-yard loss on first down. Hill then turned a short pass from Mahomes into a four-yard gain as he juked and wove through defenders before running out of bounds. On 3rd-and-8, Travis Kelce was whistled for a false start, turning it into a 3rd-and-13.
Mahomes was sacked by Arizona’s Chandler Jones on the next play and forced the Chiefs to settle for a 45-yard field goal.
Jones also ended the Chiefs’ next drive, sacking Mahomes on 3rd-and-4 at Arizona’s 21 to force Harrison Butker to kick another field goal.
Finally, though, the record came on another touchdown pass to Tyreek Hill on third-and-14 as Mahomes rocketed a pass to Hill just over the goal line.
“He’s had a heck of a year,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “He’s playing his heart out. I love the backside of that; the preparation and how he goes about his business there day in and day out. You guys have a chance to see him at practice early and comes out every day bringing energy and he makes sure that he has his things in order. When he does that, and he’s got a lot on his plate, as far as responsibility goes, to run that offense, and he takes care of that.
“He’s in a position where he can make everyone better around him, and he’s doing that. I am proud of him for how he’s going about his business.”
Mahomes had the chance to make more history in Sunday’s game. He entered Sunday’s matchup with eight straight 300-yard passing games. The NFL record is nine. But he fell short, only passing for 249 yards on 21 of 28 completions.
Brooke Pryor
Brooke Pryor covers the Kansas City Chiefs and NFL for The Star.
This story was originally published November 11, 2018 at 1:12 PM.