Patrick Mahomes compared Travis Kelce's listening ability to his 3-year-old daughter Sterling after the Kansas City Chiefs remained undefeated following a 26-13 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Monday Night Football. The comparison came after a lateral play that worked, but it was not exactly what Mahomes instructed.
During the second quarter, when Kansas City held a narrow three-point lead, the Chiefs dialed up a lateral play that head coach Andy Reid later noted is routinely practiced. Mahomes connected with Kelce for a five-yard pass over the middle, but the three-time Super Bowl champion ignored the two-time league MVP to perform his own ideas.
Instead of sticking to the original plan, Kelce made a quick break toward the left hash, hoping to maximize yardage. As he crossed the left hash, he took matters into his own hands and tossed the ball laterally to running back Samaje Perine, who caught it but fell just short of converting the 3rd-and-22.
Mahomes previously instructed Kelce to get into field goal range. After speaking to the press, the Chief's tight end joked that Kelce lacks listening skills. "I'm shaking my head because, before the play, I told him before the play that I was going to throw it to him to get into field goal range. He underhand shoveled it across the entire field," which caused the media to laugh.
"It's like I'm talking to Sterling," he joked. "But that's Travis man. He's a special player. Long as he does it and it works, no one is going to say anything."
The Chiefs may not have converted on that specific play, but the attempt reflected the risk the team is willing to take in its quest for three straight Super Bowl titles. Mahomes surgically picked apart the Saints defense with a 28-of-36 passing performance, racking up 331 yards through the air, but without any passing touchdowns.
Kelce hauled in nine catches for 70 yards, performing well with girlfriend Taylor Swift in attendance . But Juju Smith-Schuster stole the spotlight in the passing game, leading the team with seven receptions for 130 yards.
While the arm of Mahomes was effective, the Chiefs heavily relied on their ground attack, with Kareem Hunt pounding the rock for 103 rushing yards and finding the end zone. The offense also showed off its creativity with a trick play involving rookie wide receiver Xavier Worthy. Kelce lined up under center to hand it off to Worthy, who darted into the end zone to give the commemorative ball to his mom.
Kicker Harrison Butker played a crucial role in the game, which could have been why Mahomes was laser-focused on getting the offense into field goal range. Butker outscored the Saints on his own, contributing 14 points. He knocked through 4 of 5 field goals and was perfect on extra-point attempts during the game.
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