Film Study: Looking back at Patrick Mahomes’ debut vs. Denver Broncos
By Grant Tuttle
The Chiefs are headed to Denver to face off with the Broncos for Monday Night Football. Last time the two teams met, Patrick Mahomes made his first start.
The last time the Kansas City Chiefs prepared to enter Mile High Stadium to face the Denver Broncos, no one had any idea what was being birthed. The Chiefs were headed to the playoffs, and fans were about to see the debut of rookie quarterback Patrick Mahomes in real game action.
Mahomes went in to Denver surrounded by backups and came away with a victory against many of the Broncos starters. Here is a closer look at what happened:
Statline
Passing:
KC: Patrick Mahomes, 22/35, 284 yards, 8.1 avg, 0 TDs, 1 INT.
Den: Paxton Lynch, 21/31, 254 yards, 8.2 avg, 2 TDs, 2 INTs.
Rushing:
Den: CJ Anderson, 18 carries, 61 yards, 3.4 avg, 0 TDs.
KC: Anthony Sherman, 14 carries, 40 yards, 2.9 avg, 1 TD.
Receiving:
KC: Albert Wilson, 10 receptions, 147 yards, 14.7 avg, 0 TDs
Den: Jordan Taylor, 6 receptions, 65 yards, 10.8 avg, 0 TDs
Breakdown of key plays:
Note: To view the film, click the link in blue. It will open a tab to YouTube. (My apologies that it has to be done this way.)
14:46 1st Quarter, 3rd&10 (Watch)
This marks the first completion of Mahomes career. On this play, Mahomes lines up and stays strong in the pocket locating a tight window to throw in, hitting Demetrius Harris deep down the field. As is common with Harris, he makes a very difficult catch. Big play for the Chiefs first drive.
14:10 1st Quarter, 2nd&10 (Watch)
Just a few plays later, the Chiefs give Kareem Hunt his only carry of the day and he made the most of it. With good blocking up front, Hunt finds a seam and makes the safety miss. This would give the Chiefs the lead and ultimately make him the 2017 rushing champion. I still love watching Aqib Talib’s effort (or lack thereof) on this play. 7-0 Chiefs
The Broncos were held to a three and out on their first drive. Paxton Lynch and the Broncos were forced to fold and punt the football away. This was a big accomplishment for the Chiefs defense, because the starters were not on the field and even when they were, the team struggled holding teams to three and out situations.
12:28 1st Quarter, 1st&10 (Watch)
This is the marking of Patrick Mahomes first career interception. In 2018m we have not seen anything close to this, which shows how far his growth has come. However, on this particular play, Mahomes trusts his arm a little too much. While his target is open, Mahomes lets his pass sail on him a bit. This could be due to his first time playing in Denver or that he hurried the pass. Nonetheless, the Broncos defense forces a turnover.
After a promising drive, the broncos have to settle for a field goal. Great balance of run and pass. 7-3 Chiefs.
The next drive for the Chiefs resulted in a three and out after an errant snap that Mahomes had to recover losing five yards. Because of this, the Chiefs don’t recover and were forced to punt.
Despite great field advantage, the Broncos are held to a three and out after a bad miss by Paxton Lynch.
The Chiefs get the ball back and Mahomes makes a few good plays. However, the defense ultimately wins, forcing Kansas City to punt.
5:25 2nd Quarter, 2nd&9 (Watch)
Finally one team cracks. Unfortunately, it’s the Chiefs. After a well sustained drive, the Broncos score their first touchdown of the game. On this play, Denver runs a well-executed slip screen. De’Angelo Henderson makes a few Chiefs miss in the middle of the field and bounces outside, scampering into the end zone. 10-7 Broncos
1:12 2nd Quarter, 2nd&Goal (Watch)
After a lot of great plays from Patrick Mahomes and Albert Wilson, the Chiefs score a TD via everyone’s favorite fullback, Anthony Sherman. This is simply an old-fashioned power run. Sherman’s touchdown would cap off one of the most impressive drives of the game for the Chiefs. 14-10 Chiefs
0:29 2nd Quarter, 2nd&10 (Watch)
On the next drive, the Broncos make several big plays in the passing game and look to score right before the half. Lynch looked like a decent quarterback until this play, in which Lynch threw an interception in the middle of the field to Terrance Smith.
Chiefs take a knee and run the clock down to 8 seconds in the half and have to punt. After a booming punt from Dustin Colquitt, time expires.
The Broncos get the ball to start the second half. The Chiefs defense does a decent job, holding the Broncos to one first down. The Broncos opt to punt again.
After a really long drive that included big plays from Demetrius Harris and Albert Wilson and included a fourth down conversion from Anthony Sherman, the Chiefs were forced to kick a short field goal at the 2 yard line. 17-10 Chiefs