Kembali
The Kansas City Chiefs had an uphill battle against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday Night Football.
The Chiefs entered Sunday’s matchup without starting right tackle Jaylon Moore, who was sidelined by a concussion, and left tackle Josh Simmons, who remained out with a back injury. They were also missing injured receivers Rashee Rice and Tyquan Thornton.
That showed up in the final score, as they were dominated 20-3. However, in the fourth quarter, when the game was still conceivably within reach, a critical error from Xavier Worthy left Patrick Mahomes uncharacteristically frustrated.
Fans, though, weren’t fully sure if his reaction was justified.
Coming into the game, the Chiefs had a top-10 unit in PFN’s Offense Impact Metric. But a lot of that had to do with the explosion from Kenneth Walker III, who leads the league in rushing yards by a sizeable margin.
The passing game left a lot to be desired, and that was before their two best receivers went down with injuries. Against the Seahawks, as Walker struggled and finished with just 36 rushing yards, the depleted receiving corps wasn’t enough to sustain the Chiefs.
Things came to a head in the fourth quarter. In what was shaping up to be their best drive of the game, the Chiefs came up to the 45-yard line. On 1st-and-10, Mahomes threw a perfect ball for Worthy to catch and run.
However, Worthy failed to secure the pass, prompting a visibly frustrated reaction from Mahomes. Although Kansas City continued moving the ball afterward, the possession ultimately ended without points when Harrison Butker missed a 45-yard field goal.
Worthy finished with only three catches for 11 yards on six targets, underscoring Kansas City’s inability to generate meaningful production from its available wide receivers.
“You don’t often see Patrick Mahomes show frustration like this,” Henry McKenna of Fox Sports was quick to notice. “But after Xavier Worthy’s drop… the QB was upset.”
“Cause he’s seen this for 3 years,” one fan argued for Mahomes. “He’s sick of this [expletive]… And I don’t blame him.”
One fan jokingly claimed, “He was seeing ghosts of Toney and Moore there,” while another fan explained, “Inconsistency is the running theme for Chiefs WRs in recent years. Yes, Mahomes’ reaction is warranted. Worthy making catches last week, then dropping crucial ones is absurd.”
For one fan, though, it was becoming a more common sight to see Mahomes upset. With the offensive unit not working as seamlessly as it has over the years, he believes they have lost the punch they once had.
“You see frustration from Mahomes plenty of the time, especially over the last few years as the offense has performed worse and worse,”the fan claimed. “Should’ve known that things would never stay the way they were with Kelce & Hill.”
For one fan, though, one drop from Worthy couldn’t take away from an all-around underwhelming night for Mahomes. Coming into the game at number 10 in PFN’s Quarterback Impact Metric, he finished with just 165 yards and an interception.
“Mahomes was awful,” one fan announced. “So, let’s not blame Worthy for Mahomes not being able to handle the Hawks’ defense.”
It remains to be seen if this was a blip for the Chiefs, given the particularly strenuous circumstances in this game, or a canary in the coal mine for the problems plaguing this roster. Still at 5-1, they are at the top of the AFC West, but the margin for error is slim.
With the Denver Broncos hot on their heels, Week 8’s game could have major implications. And with the wide receiving room looking like it needs a clear upgrade, this game may have been the most obvious indicator of their need for a difference-maker.