Patrick Mahomes says he’s not playing well. Now, he’s changing his practice routine

The Andy Reid recap of a win spanned 123 seconds, an opening monologue that complimented a handful of plays and those who made them, but otherwise resembled the head coach of a team coming off a different result. He eventually picked up on that theme, interrupting himself to mention that getting to 3-0 in the NFL is not quite that easy. And part of how the Chiefs have remained unbeaten, he added, is that for all of the adversity along the way, “Nobody is pointing fingers.”

But that’s not entirely true.

Patrick Mahomes is pointing one.

At himself.

On the heels of Sunday’s 22-17 win against the Falcons in Atlanta, Mahomes has been consistent with his self-evaluation. Consistent with, well, his inconsistency. “I feel like I haven’t played very well,” he said. Mahomes has been known to do this sort of thing — diverting attention inward to send a message that an undefeated record shouldn’t breed contentment. It’s a commendable and refreshing trait, with that message intended to resonate in the locker room.

But there’s a difference in what he’s said this week: He’s right. Mahomes has endured a couple of out-of-character, lousy weeks, even as the Chiefs just keep on winning. That’s a combination that would have sounded not only impracticable but impossible a couple of years ago. The Chiefs are winning games without that guy playing good football?

Really, though. It’s true. Sure, perhaps a bit exaggerated, considering he left out the part about playing just fine against the Ravens in the opener, even if he mixed in a baffling interception. But there is validity in the overall assessment, particularly if we’re talking Sunday night in Atlanta — so much validity that he is changing his practice habits ahead of the trip to Los Angeles this week.

The gist? Don’t rush the details. Mahomes has played like a quarterback in a hurry over the last three halves of football — like a quarterback who thought he needed to hurry. In Atlanta last Sunday, he frequently reacted to pressure that didn’t even exist, as though he was still running from the ghosts of rookie left tackle Kingsley Suamataia’s second half a week earlier against the Bengals. It’s telling that Reid’s assessment included this: “I thought the offensive line did a nice job there, and I think Pat will see that and that also helps the situation.”

In other words: Mahomes didn’t need to hurry, and the film should provide some confidence to take a breath. Mahomes was actually the least-pressured quarterback in the NFL in Week 3 — only 16.7% of his dropbacks resulted in a pressure, per Next Gen Stats. But he rushed his throwing process. Rushed his fundamentals. The result? One of the most inaccurate days we’ve seen from him. His completion percentage over expectation was negative-4.8%, per Next Gen Stats.

You don’t need the numbers. Just watch the film, because that thread emerges — an open receiver, followed by an inaccurate throw. There are a handful of examples on the opening drive alone. Heck, there’s an example on the opening play. “Even the first throw of the game, I just kind of flick it off-balance and don’t hit Rashee (Rice) going down the seam there,” Mahomes said. Then he did it again. And again.

Mahomes had Rice wide open on third-and-6 later in the opening script, but he failed to properly turn his base to direct the throw, instead relying purely on his arm to do the work. Rice had to dive to make the catch, despite no defender in sight, and then roll to the first down marker.

The interception came five plays later in the end zone. Rookie running back Carson Steele didn’t do his part on that play — failing to pick up a blitz — but Mahomes lazily flicked a pass with his weight back, failing to set his feet. It was underthrown.  He’d miss Rice again on a short drag route. He’d miss Worthy on a small opening for a deep post pattern. We could go on, because there were a variety of misses. But they sprouted from the same roots. He rushed — or altogether skipped — the fundamentals.

hen Mahomes says he’s not playing good football, and let’s recognize he’s grading on a different scale in a league enduring a lot of shoddy quarterback play, that is what he’s referencing. The footwork. The base alignment. How he just blew right past them. “I think I’m trusting my arm too much in some of those throws,” Mahomes said, adding, “I gotta get back to my fundamentals.”

How? Well, it’s prompted an interesting change — or perhaps tweak is a better word for it — during practice this week. Mahomes can make even the mundane drills an enjoyable watch, using just his arm, or even just his wrist, to sling a football downfield. The no-look stuff happens in practice. The side-arm throws. All of it. His arm talent is unique. The off-platform throws comprise his rarity. You don’t want to lose that. Neither, though, do you want to rely on it.

Every season, a game or two provides that reminder. It came early this year. So this week, Mahomes is making a point to treat every throw in practice like it’s a throw in a game. Remember, for example, that short drag route he threw behind Rice? “I’m going to work on making sure I’m leading them, in case there would be a guy behind them where he needs to catch the ball and run,” Mahomes said. “Just little things like that, you take them for granted a lot of times when you’re going through these early-year practices.

But I’m trying to make sure that I stay on top of these things.” The little things. That is the Chiefs offense. For all of the offseason talk about improving the downfield passing, the Chiefs have only attempted four throws that traveled at least 20 yards in the air. Only the Buccaneers have attempted fewer. Losing Hollywood Brown in the preseason hasn’t helped the cause. But it’s the effect that’s relevant now. The Chiefs are throwing the ball shorter and quicker than they ever have — Mahomes’ average depth of target is lower than a year ago, when it was the lowest in the league.

And 57% of his attempts Sunday were released in under 2.5 seconds, even more than last season. Their offense is the little things. The throws he rushed on Sunday built the foundation of the game plan. And while there has been criticism of the latter, let me point this out: The plays were open. The Chiefs’ targeted receivers have operated with the third most separation in the league this season. The game plan would have worked if the throws were on target. That’s not a bad place to be in the big picture, by the way.

The Chiefs are 3-0, with wins over the previous two AFC Championship Game participants and a road win in prime time. They are analyzing how to improve on wins, which has a different feel than the staleness of a year ago. And if you’re going to still dissect a problem within the offense, as we’re doing here, there’s one place you’d certainly prefer able to provide the solution. The same place in which Mahomes pointed his proverbial finger. The quarterback with three Super Bowl rings.