Washington (AFP) – Undefeated Kansas City will try to match the greatest start in team history on Sunday when the two-time reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs play host to the Denver Broncos. Patrick Mahomes, a two-time NFL Most Valuable Player and three-time Super Bowl champion, is off to the best start of his eight-year career at 8-0 while the best Chiefs start is 9-0 from the 2013 and 2003 seasons.
“It’s just we’re a really good football team and whatever it takes that day, guys are going to step up and make the play,” Mahomes said. “None of us are about stats here. We’re about wins. Just to be able to go in every week and know we’re going to find a way to win the football game, it comes with experience. It comes with a great culture we’ve built here.”
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“There’s just a great culture of winning. I think we’re getting better and better each week. We’re not playing our best football yet and we’re still finding ways to win, so let’s just continue to get better and build up into the playoffs.”
Six of Kansas City’s eight wins this season have been by seven points or fewer, clutch playmaking in the fourth quarter replacing the overpowering talent of past seasons and more lopsided results. “It seems like we play our best football in the fourth quarter and it’s because we’ve been preparing ourselves all year long to play our best football then,” Mahomes said. “Games in the NFL are such close margins that every game seems like it goes down to the very end. I feel like we’re the best prepared team in those situations.”
The Broncos (5-4) beat the Chiefs 24-9 last year in Denver, and while Sunday’s showdown is in Kansas City, Mahomes respects how well AFC West division-rival Denver knows his team and its tendencies. “This should be a great challenge for us,” Mahomes said. “They have an understanding for the scheme we run. (They) know how to take away some of the stuff we’re really good at. They play together as a team. They play hard. They don’t let you have anything easy. Some of those drives, we got down the field but they forced us into turnovers, into field goals and they played the long game.”
“It’s about us executing these long drives and finding ways to get in the end zone. I know it’s going to take perfection on every single drive in order to do that.”
– Mahomes the ‘motivator’ –
The Chiefs have outscored rivals 71-42 in the fourth quarter, with Mahomes able to direct Kansas City on long drives for critical points and to run time off the clock at the finish. “We have a great third-down scheme, answers versus all the coverages the defenses play,” he said. “We get a lot of different coverages but we’ve seen some of them now so we know, so I know where to go with the ball and guys are getting first downs.”
The Chiefs practice long-drive drills every week, with Mahomes serving as “motivator” on the marches in workouts, adding, “I’m trying to push the guys through the finish line.”
Two other games Sunday will match division leaders, with the NFC North-leading Detroit Lions (7-1) at AFC South leader Houston (6-3) and the AFC North-leading Pittsburgh Steelers (6-2) at NFC East leader Washington (7-2). Four other teams with six wins or more hit the road to face opponents with losing records as the Philadelphia Eagles (6-2) visit Dallas (3-5), the Atlanta Falcons (6-3) travel to New Orleans (2-7), the Buffalo Bills (7-2) play at Indianapolis (4-5), and the Minnesota Vikings (6-2) visit Jacksonville (2-7).
Other games Sunday find the New York Jets at Arizona, Tennessee at the Los Angeles Chargers, San Francisco at Tampa Bay, the New York Giants at Carolina and New England at Chicago, with Miami at the Los Angeles Rams on Monday.
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