Mahomes confident Chiefs are 'close' after falling to 0-2

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw a pair of deep passes in the waning minutes of a 20-17 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in their Super Bowl rematch Sunday. Both were intended for Tyquan Thornton, and together they told the story of the Kansas City Chiefs.

The first was simply an overthrow when Thornton was wide open, which would've gone for an easy touchdown. It seemed to characterize the way the Chiefs have been unable to get their once high-powered offense going. They managed just 294 yards against the Eagles in a display of offensive ineptitude that closely mimicked the big game last February.

The second was a completion to Thornton in the end zone. It was the first big play the Chiefs hit all game, and it came too late, epitomizing the close-but-not-good-enough way things are going for the AFC champs these days.

The Eagles recovered the ensuing onside kick and ran out the clock on the Chiefs' first home loss since Dec. 25, 2023.

“Keep playing hard,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said simply. “I'll take this one. Keep playing hard. Stick together.”

The Chiefs are now 0-2 for the first time since 2014, when Reid was in his second season in Kansas City. That also was the last time they failed to make the playoffs; they've reached at least the AFC title game the last seven seasons.

In the five seasons of an expanded 14-team playoff, only five of the 41 teams to start 0-2 made it into the postseason.

It's also the first time that Mahomes, one of the fiercest competitors in the NFL and perhaps all of sports, has been 0-2 since the 2011 season at Whitehouse High School in Texas. That was his sophomore season, the year before he became starting QB.

“We played two good football teams and made mistakes in big moments, stuff that we're not used to doing,” Mahomes said. “But I think we're coming together as a team. I mean, we deal with adversity. It's about how you deal with it. And obviously this isn't how we want to start, but how are we going to respond?”

The fact that both of those deep shots in the final minutes of the game went to Thornton also is telling. The Chiefs knew they would be without top wide receiver Rashee Rice for the first six games for violating the NFL's personal-conduct policy, part of the fallout for his street-racing crash on a Dallas highway in March 2024. But they didn't know they would be down three of their four primary wide receivers with Xavier Worthy and Jalen Royals both sidelined by injuries.

Worthy couldn't even make it through the first quarter of a season-opening loss to the Chargers in Brazil before dislocating his shoulder in a collision with teammate Travis Kelce. Royals has not made it on the field at all due to an knee injury.

The schedule hasn't done the Chiefs any favors, either.

They started off by traveling halfway around the world to play one of the up-and-coming teams in the AFC on foreign soil, rather than be rewarded with a home opener for its latest Super Bowl appearance. Then, they had to fly home for a rematch with a team that routed them 40-22 at the Superdome in New Orleans to deny them an unprecedented Super Bowl three-peat.

The path gets a little easier, at least temporarily. The Chiefs visit the New York Giants next weekend for a matchup of winless teams. But then comes a stretch in which the Chiefs play at least four legitimate championship contenders in the Ravens, Lions, Commanders and Bills, and one that could ultimately determine the season before it even reaches the midway mark.

“It's not like we're missing by much,” Mahomes said. “I know it sucks for fans, but I feel like we're close. And so all we can do is just continue to work and continue to get after it and be ready.”

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl