In retrospect, the Chiefs erred with ‘Run it Back’ mantra. Here’s how they’ve evolved
As the Chiefs trailed by 22 points in the waning minutes of the Super Bowl, the stands in Tampa Bay had long been vacated by those wearing red. From a lower-level seat, Kansas City’s mayor invited a local police officer to stand down and just enjoy it, the outcome by then clear to most everyone.
Most.
Only after a late interception — down 22, 1:41 left — would Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes acknowledge to even himself that, you know what, it probably wasn’t going to be his night. He’s convincing in saying he truly considered the comeback a possibility until that play, as crazy as anyone reading this might think that sounds.
But let’s examine his evidence.
The Chiefs had spent the season in uneasy circumstances most weeks, whether it be early deficits, late deficits, a need for a two-minute drill touchdown or a required last-minute stop. And things just seemed to work out. They won 14 of their 15 regular-season games with Mahomes under center, more than any other team in football. They applauded their own ability to find different ways to win games. How can that be anything other than a positive trait?
In reflection, though, it built up a feeling that they were indestructible.
And then they were, well, destructed.
“We kind of relied on we were just going to figure it out and were were going to go out there and find a way to win no matter what the situation is,” Mahomes said. “I think that showed the last game.”
As Mahomes explored avenues toward individual improvement this summer — he spent more time looking inward than outward this offseason — he settled on practical things he will implement in his game. He hopes to scramble less frequently, for example, and become more comfortable moving within the pocket rather than trying to find a crease outside it.
But there are psychological extracts that will alter Mahomes’ mental approach in 2021. Such as: In order to be best prepared for the most important games of the season, the Chiefs must take more seriously the steps that precede it.
A year ago, Mahomes believes now, they overlooked the importance of fast starts, a problem compounded by the fact they won so many games without them. They didn’t think of it as much of a problem.
Until it was.
“I think you’ll see a new intensity from us, just from the beginning of games, from the beginning of the season, to make sure we’re doing everything the right way,” Mahomes said. “Whenever we are getting up on teams — or if we do find ourselves in a hole or we do get up on teams — we’ll have the mentality of ‘We gotta go now.’ We can’t wait until the end of the game.”
Super Bowl or bust? Maybe, but don’t mention it
In retrospect, maybe “Run It Back” was a mistake. Nobody is outright saying that because the impetus behind it derived from a good place — trying to turn the attention from one championship toward winning a second. But by its nature, the mantra reminded the Chiefs only of their end goal.
Not the details it would take to get there.
Yes, they want to win another Super Bowl.
But must they talk about it every day?
“I don’t want to say we looked ahead last year, but it’s almost like we were just like, ‘Let’s just get to the Super Bowl’ the whole entire season,” Mahomes said. “Whereas now, we’ll take it more day by day. We need to better ourselves so if we hopefully do get to the Super Bowl, we’ll be ready to go.”
That’s a lesson they’re applying. You’ll notice it in bits and pieces throughout the season.
During his weekly press conference Wednesday, asked about his personal goals, Mahomes replied, “I just want to win every single day. That’s what we were preaching on the first day of practice. I’m going with the mindset that I can be the best me at practice.”
It’s kind of a nothing comment, right?
Except it’s actually a trend. It’s part of the reasoning for his 20-0 remark over the summer. You can win a Super Bowl if you lose Week 1. Skating through a season unbeaten, though, requires meticulous concentration on each and every game — something the Chiefs deemed absent on occasion, even in a season in which they finished 14-2. The deficits sometimes caught their attention, and they were good enough to play catch-up.
This concept isn’t just coming from Mahomes, either. Head coach Andy Reid also took a question Wednesday about his team’s Super Bowl chances. He, too, sidestepped it.
“I don’t think you go there right now,” he replied immediately, later adding, “You really don’t even let your mind go that direction. You can’t control that part, so you try to really focus on the things you can control and don’t let those hurdles get in the way of your thought process.”
‘Ready to play from the first snap’
So, where might this all play out this season?
Those lackluster starts, for one. The Chiefs averaged 5.4 points per first quarter in 2021, 13th in the NFL for a team that paced the league in offense. Two years earlier, by contrast, they led the league at 8.9.
The Chiefs discovered too late, with 97 million people watching, that a lackadaisical opening can affect the outcome of a game. There are deficits too great to overcome, even for a team with this talent, this coach and this quarterback.
They’re beatable, not invincible.
“We went through a little phase last year where we didn’t start fast and kind picked it up as we went,” Reid said. “The number of games in this league that are determined by 7 points or less is ridiculous. There’s so much parity. So I analyze those things and look at them to get better, but with all the situational football you prepare for, you prepare in case you’re in that mode.”
To be sure, the Chiefs were really good in that win-any-way-possible mode. There were, after all, some good qualities that developed through those phases of slow starts. They clawed and scratched to win some games. They gave it to Mahomes and watched him find a way to win others. He led fourth-quarter comebacks against the Chargers, Raiders and Falcons — three games, mind you, in which the Chiefs were favored by more than a touchdown.
There will be games in which they’ll need that again. But better yet will be the games in which they don’t.
Look, the Chiefs remain good enough to win when they’re not at their best. They’re still projected for more victories than any other team in the Las Vegas sportsbooks. They’re still the Super Bowl favorites, too.
Just nobody tell them. At least not yet.
“There were a lot of games (last season) we should’ve put away earlier that we kind of let teams get back in it, and we just found a way to win it in the end,” Mahomes said. “Which is awesome — you gotta be able to do that in this league; everybody is so similar.
“But at the end of the day, you gotta come ready to play from the first snap, especially when you’re in big games of that caliber.”