The Bengals three-man rush got best of Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs

Very early in the first quarter of the AFC Championship Game, announcer Tony Romo highlighted the importance of keeping Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes in the pocket. The star signal-caller is notorious for making plays from sideline to sideline and scrambling for yardage when necessary.

Heading into the second half of the game, the Cincinnati Bengals revamped their approach to defending Mahomes, and it worked to perfection.

Cincinnati’s plan in the second half was flawless. Often showing four or five pass rushers, the Bengals peeled back one or even two players to spy Mahomes, instead of rushing only three players to the Chiefs’ five offensive linemen. All second half, there was a Bengals defender standing patiently at the line of scrimmage (most often linebacker Logan Wilson), keeping Mahomes in the pocket.

The Bengals used a three-man rush to somehow flummox Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.

The Bengals rushed three down linemen on 12 passing plays in the second half and overtime. Four of those plays resulted in sacks (all four in the 4th quarter), and another resulted in the overtime interception.

Cincinnati’s discipline in containing Mahomes and taking their chances with an eight-man zone ultimately changed the entire flow of the game. Defensive ends Trey Hendrickson and Sam Hubbard were relentless, as Mahomes was often paralyzed in the backfield while trying to decipher the Cincinnati defense.

Meanwhile, the Chiefs were consistently gaining five yards a pop in the run game. Jerick McKinnon finished with 12 carries for 65 yards, and Clyde Edwards-Helaire chipped in 36 yards on 6 totes. Mecole Hardman added 18 yards on 2 rushes. Kansas City’s inability to adjust offensively ultimately played directly into the Bengals’ hands.

There is no one person to shoulder the blame here. From head coach Andy Reid to offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy, the rest of the coaching staff as well as Mahomes himself, there is plenty to unpack about how to fix what happened in this game.

Unfortunately, there is also a lot of time in which to unpack it.