KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In case you hadn’t heard, the Kansas City Chiefs’ AFC Divisional win Sunday at Buffalo was Patrick Mahomes’ first road playoff game.
Or was it?
“We played the Super Bowl in Tampa Bay and we lost that one,” a jovial Mahomes said after the 27-24 comeback victory. “I didn’t like to bring that one up, but we’ve played basically road playoff games before.”
Still, the storyline of Mahomes finally having to hit the road after years of playing every postseason game — all 12 of his non-Super Bowl playoff battles to kick off an already remarkable career — at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium was inescapable.
“I was very excited,” Mahomes said. “Honestly, it wasn’t even like a negative thing. It was going to be a great environment. Being here in Buffalo, I’d heard about it. Obviously, I’d played here but not with the fans. I knew the fans were going to be rowdy; it was going to be hostile. But you appreciate the greatness of organizations that are, week in and week out, packing stadiums and being fans. That’s what it’s all about.”
The narrative was, in a word: overblown.
During the regular season, Mahomes actually owns a better road record (38-11) than he does at home (36-11).
He’s as competitive as they come, driven to prove any and every doubter wrong, never shies away from a challenge and has played in plenty of big games during his NFL career.
It shouldn’t be a surprise that Mahomes, who posted a 131.6 rating and 91.2 QBR, rose to the moment, going 17 of 23 for 215 yards with two touchdowns and no turnovers.
“That was fun,” Mahomes said. “I love Arrowhead, but it’s always fun when you get to come together as a team and really just be like y’all-vs.-everybody and get the win. It’s always great to be in great environments and find a way to get the win.”
Mahomes’ moxie fuels Kansas City’s identity. The Chiefs weren’t going to wilt just because Buffalo gets crazy snow and Bills Mafia gets crazy loaded for games.
“We were coming into someone else’s territory and knew that we had to come out with a ‘dub’ by fighting to the end of the game,” rookie wide receiver Rashee Rice, who had four catches for 47 yards, said. “The atmosphere was great, but I love being able to come in here knowing you’re the outlaw. It was nothing but a sea of blue in here and we turned it red.”
Kansas City will be doubted again as it prepares to hit the road for next Sunday’s AFC Championship Game against the Ravens in Baltimore.
The Chiefs have hosted the last five AFC Championship Games, an NFL record, so going on the road will be new and the Ravens absolutely earned the top seed and home-field advantage with a dominant regular season.
But count Kansas City out at your own peril.
“Going into a hostile environment, not a lot of people believed in us and a lot of people doubted us, but more so than ever we depended on each other,” defensive tackle Chris Jones — who made three tackles, recorded a quarterback hit and deflected a pass in the win — said. “When things went bad, we didn’t point fingers. We depended on each other.”
The Chiefs, who have won the AFC title in three of the last four seasons, face the Ravens at 2 p.m. next Sunday at M&T Stadium in Stadium with a berth in Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas at stake.
“There’s a lot of football left to be played,” linebacker Nick Bolton, who finished with a game-best 13 tackles, said. “We’ve got a chance to go down to Baltimore this week and have a chance to play for the Super Bowl, so that’s our mindset.”
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