Patrick Mahomes points to trust issues in Chiefs - "It's about me trusting them"
Patrick Mahomes has been mostly quiet since the Kansas City Chiefs suffered another disappointing Super Bowl loss two and a half months ago. But as he and his teammates begin preparations for the 2025 season, the star quarterback is speaking up about team chemistry and the road ahead.
Appearing in a Zoom call with reporters on Wednesday, he said (per FOX4 News Kansas City's Harold Kuntz):
"The goal is to try to get to some of the explosive plays we've had in the past... We got the guys, it's about me trusting them."
A key piece of the Chiefs’ bounce-back plans is the return of wide receiver Rashee Rice, who led the league with 24 receptions in 2024 before a season-ending knee injury. Mahomes had high praise for the second-year wideout:
"He looks really good. He is running routes, he's catching the football. I don't know when we get back into the actual OTAs (in May) how much he'll be able to do, but he's been able to do everything here as far as running routes and everything like that."
Patrick Mahomes still has "bad taste" two and a half months after Super Bowl LIX loss
Whenever Patrick Mahomes wins a Super Bowl, it is guaranteed to have been a very exciting game, one that was not settled until within the last two minutes at the earliest. But when he loses, it is guaranteed to be in a rout.
Take Super Bowl LV, for instance. Injuries to the Chiefs' offensive line ensured that Mahomes was desperately scrambling all over the field against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' defense, and he failed to throw a touchdown for the first time in his career.
Four years later, in Super Bowl LIX against the Philadelphia Eagles, he was sacked six times despite not being blitzed at all, and did not throw a touchdown until the second half. Two and a half months later, Mahomes is still not over it, as he admitted in the same media session:
"I think when you get some of those tiring sets or reps, you have something in the back of your mind that you're kind of pushing towards," he said.
"You have that bad taste in your mouth from the last time you stepped on the football field... so it gives you the push that you want to go out there and be better and show what we're really about."
Chiefs OTAs will be held on May 27-29, June 2-4, and June 10-13. Mandatory minicamp is on June 17-19.