Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce Assign Blame Before Must-Win Game Sunday

Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce Assign Blame Before Must-Win Game Sunday
It’s a must-win in Kansa Patrick Mahomes #15

Chiefs face a must-win game against Colts to keep playoff hopes alive.
Mahomes says, “It starts with me”—blames team’s inconsistency for struggles.
Kelce urges greater urgency, stating, “There need23 AM EST

Chiefs face a must-win game against Colts to keep playoff hopes alive.
Mahomes says, “It starts with me”—blames team’s inconsistency for struggles.
Kelce urges greater urgency, stating, “There needs to be a sense of urgency.”
The Kansas City Chiefs are facing a must-win game on Sunday.

Kansas City, 5-5 on the year, is hosting Indianapolis at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday afternoon. The Chiefs, who lost to the Eagles in Super Bowl 59 last year, are coming off a Week 11 loss to Denver. Kansas City is currently on the outside looking in with the AFC playoff race. A loss on Sunday would be devastating to Kansas City’s playoff hopes.

ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter outlined the big stakes heading into kickoff on Sunday afternoon.

“At 5-5, the Chiefs currently are out of the AFC playoffs. This season, they’re 0–4 against teams that would be in the playoff field today, with losses to the Broncos, Chargers, Bills and Jaguars. Today the Chiefs face the Colts, the AFC’s current No. 3 seed, and the Texans in Week 14, who are also ahead of KC. With seven games remaining, some of these upcoming matchups could have significant head-to-head implication,” he shared on X.

Mahomes and Kelce.
The Chiefs have been inconsistent all season long. Heading into Sunday’s must-win game, both Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce assigned blame for their team’s struggles so far this regular season.

They’re both on the same page.

Mahomes, Kelce assign blame for 5-5 season
Mahomes believes that the Chiefs’ problems come down to a lack of consistency. The Chiefs haven’t been consistent enough in their preparation, execution, work ethic, etc.

“I think we’re really talented and we’ve got a lot of great players, but it’s about being more consistent. I think it starts with me,” Mahomes said. “There’s times where I’m firing and we’re moving the ball down the field at ease. But there’s times where we go in spurts where I miss a throw or a [pass] protection call.

“We haven’t been consistent enough to win games. It starts with me.”

Kelce, meanwhile, believes that Kansas City’s sense of urgency hasn’t been high enough. That’ll have to change on Sunday.

“There needs to be a sense of urgency to get that (expletive) done and to be proficient with how you’re getting it done,” Kelce said, via Kansas City Chiefs on SI. “And I got a lot of faith in the guys in this building. I know I’m gonna go to war for them.”

Kelce and Mahomes remain confident in what could happen moving forward, though.

“We got a (heck) of a team coming in that’s firing on all cylinders, that looks like they’re getting after everybody in the run game and pass game,” Kelce said. “And we’re going to have to put up points to help our defense. Last week, we didn’t do that. This week, it’s about time that we put it together, man.”

Kickoff on Sunday is set for 1 p.m. E.T.

The game will air on CBS. It’s a must-win game for the Chiefs if they want to stay alive in the heated AFC playoff race.