Mahomes is aiming for a “quieter” ending after another Chiefs walk-off

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — After the Kansas City Chiefs earned their fifth walk-off win of the season on Sunday, quarterback Patrick Mahomes said he’ll get the wins any way he can but would prefer it if they ended up being fewer would be stressful.

“You want to have some blowouts,” Mahomes said after the Chiefs beat the Carolina Panthers 30-27 with a 31-yard field goal from rookie Spencer Shrader as time expired. “You want to be a little calmer in the fourth quarter. “I’ve always said that when you get into the playoffs and later in the season, just knowing that you’ve been there and know these moments can be a good thing how to approach it.

“But I would like to win a game (before) the very last game.”

The 10-1 Chiefs have eight wins by one point, tying the NFL record for most wins by any team in the first 11 games of a season. Half of their wins came in the last game. One of those wins was decided by a blocked field goal, one by an overtime touchdown, one when an opposing receiver missed his foot in the end zone by inches, and now two by field goals.

Mahomes led the Chiefs in their win over the Panthers. It started with two short pass completions, but the big play was a 33-yard scramble by Mahomes that put the Chiefs within field goal range.

By his own admission, Mahomes isn’t the fastest or most elusive quarterback when he’s running. But it is effective.

“He has a great feel for the game,” coach Andy Reid said. “He knows through the coverage where the guys are and what they want to achieve and achieve with the coverage, and he can feel the front lines.”

Mahomes has made some long runs late for the Chiefs in some of their most notable victories. The longest play on Mahomes’ winning run in Super Bowl LVII against the Philadelphia Eagles was a 26-yard run, and the longest play on the winning run in their Super Bowl LVIII win against the San Francisco 49ers last season was a 19-yard run. Yards run by Mahomes.

“It’s not like I plan all of this in advance,” Mahomes said. “It’s just that whenever it comes down to it and you have to make the play, I try to go out there and make the play and.” That’s why I feel like sometimes it happens a little later in games.

“You don’t want to slip. You have to kind of stretch your body out and know that you can take hits and stuff like that, but we were able to make some big runs and some big moments.”

Shrader joined the Chiefs two weeks ago as an emergency replacement for Harrison Butker, who underwent surgery for a torn meniscus. Shrader played two games, one for the Indianapolis Colts and one for the New York Jets, before joining the Chiefs in time for a game against the Buffalo Bills.

“I knew I would get a chance, so I just tried to stay calm and understand that it would come eventually,” Shrader said. “When she came, I was ready. “That’s because the team believes you can handle this situation, and then you go out there and just get it done.”

Butker has made many crucial kicks for the Chiefs, including their other walk-off field goal this season, a 51-yard throw against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Chiefs said they believed in Shrader but didn’t know exactly how he would respond in a pressure situation, which is nothing new for this year’s Chiefs but is new to him.

“That’s a lot of pressure for a new guy,” Reid said. “He’s here, replacing a future Hall of Famer for us.” “That’s not easy in these games.”