The Kansas City Chiefs have been in plenty of high-pressure situations over the years, but a two-game skid to open the season is new territory since Patrick Mahomes took over as quarterback. The last time the Chiefs were 0-2 to start a season was Andy Reid's second year on the sidelines—the only season K.C. has missed the postseason since his arrival.
As Kansas City prepares to face the New York Giants on Sunday Night Football in Week 3, Mahomes doesn't sound worried about the team's ability to rebound. When asked in a recent press conference about what informs his faith in a time like this, Mahomes expressed confidence that the Chiefs' culture and leadership will carry them through these early setbacks.
Patrick Mahomes knows the character of the Chiefs' locker room and says he's not worried about the team's 0-2 start.
“I think it’s just the people that we have in the locker room,” Mahomes told reporters. “Even though we’ve never been 0-2, we’ve had stretches where we’ve lost big games kind of consecutively, and guys have responded. It’s about the character of the guys in the locker room more than it is the play on the football field.”
Mahomes is correct to point to the team's history of coming up big. No other franchise in the NFL can rely on the string of sustained success that Mahomes and company can. After all, the Chiefs have played in five of the last six Super Bowls with three rings to show for their efforts.
“I think that we have the guys that are going to continue to work," added Mahomes. "They’re not going to let this kind of push them down. They’re going to use it, if anything, as motivation to be even better,”
Reid's extensive coaching experience, and the fact that he's one of the greatest to ever lead an NFL franchise, are also primary factors in Mahomes' belief in the Chiefs' ability to right the ship. After all, there's very little Reid hasn't seen before.
"And then the coaches that we have, they’ll continue to push to be even better," said Mahomes. "We’ll have a great week of practice this week, knowing we’re going to play our best football to win a game against a good football team in the Giants.”
The Chiefs are searching for their first win of the 2025 season after back-to-back losses to the Chargers and Eagles. A victory over the Giants would not only halt the slide but also restore some early-season confidence for a team that's not accustomed to stumbling out of the gate.