Patrick Mahomes shames his No. 4 NFL ranking with his play ... and perhaps a gesture
The left tackle caught his first career touchdown — you read that correctly — but it’s the background image that stood as the most fitting one in the Chiefs’ 34-20 victory in Baltimore.
As grown men played hot potato with a football to celebrate a cute moment that actually impacted the game, half a field away, quarterback Patrick Mahomes jogged toward the sideline with his hand in a fist.
He released his right pointer finger.
One.
Then his middle finger.
Two.
His ring finger.
Three.
And his pinky.
Four.
He would say later this was about the number of touchdowns he had thrown — but it stands as quite a coincidence that during the offseason, Mahomes came in a little lower than expected in the NFL’s Top-100 players rankings.
Where? No. 4.
The quarterback he was in the midst of beating — Ravens dual-threat Lamar Jackson — just so happened to top that list.
Hmm. Anyway, on Monday, Mahomes left no doubt. In a matchup of the past two MVP winners, Mahomes threw for four touchdowns, ran for another and charted one of the best statistical games of his career against the league’s top-ranked — and most diverse — defense.
Not bad for No. 4, right?
“Uh, I think it was like four touchdowns in the game, I think, at that point,” Mahomes said of his gesture, a smile evident on his face.
The most anticipated matchup of the NFL season turned into a first-half laugher, only momentarily made intriguing after halftime.
Because Mahomes. Each of the four touchdown passes — three in the first half — had their own element of uniqueness, their own reasoning for remembrance. He threw one pass underhanded to Anthony Sherman. He dropped a ball over the shoulder of former teammate Marcus Peters and into the arms of Tyreek Hill.
He backpedaled a country mile before launching a throw even further to Mecole Hardman. Then he hit left tackle Eric Fisher for a touchdown, a pass that might have looked a bit high, but oh by the way, he practiced throwing it a bit high just to ensure Fisher had the vertical to go get it.
And against this opponent. We should probably mention that, too.
The Ravens had allowed only 22 points over the first two weeks. Nobody in football had allowed fewer. They treat blitz packages the way Chiefs coach Andy Reid treats an offensive playbook. It’s never settled. Constantly embraces change.
It makes scouting for everything quite literally impossible. The game within the game becomes about adjustments against a team offering you only split seconds to make them.
At one point in the fourth quarter, Mahomes was 9 of 11 against the blitz, per ESPN Stats, with a pair of touchdowns.
Against stuff he had never before seen.
“They definitely had a blitz package that we weren’t necessarily prepared for,” Mahomes said. “but at the same time, we kind of talked about different stuff they could do. So I mean, obviously we had some un-scouted looks, but I thought the offensive line did a great job of picking those up, even though they were getting in gaps they hadn’t hit so far this season. It’s about communication throughout the game and making adjustments. I thought we did a good job of that.”
Eight days earlier, Mahomes’ frustration became so evident on TV cameras against the Chargers that he found himself having to explain it after the game. The annoyance rested in his own play, he said. His own decision-making.
A week later, he threw for 385 yards, the fourth-best total of his career. He totaled a 133.5 quarterback rating, the third best of his career. He did it against a team garnering Super Bowl talk.
He’s 3-0 against the Ravens, by the way. He’s unbeaten in September for his career, as well, with 32 touchdowns and zero interceptions. There’s no misprint there.
And he’s unbeaten against the team with more exotic defensive looks than any other team in the NFL. He’s thrown for at least 374 yards in all three.
So if you’re looking to rattle him — perhaps this isn’t the way. In fact, the Chargers found a way last week.
This was the response.
This story was originally published September 28, 2020 at 11:57 PM.