KANSAS CITY, Mo. — No, Patrick Mahomes wasn’t angry with Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy for not letting him wind up and throw a Hail Mary on the final play of the first half.
In fact, Mahomes and Chiefs coach Andy Reid dispelled the notion that there was anything angry about the “confrontation” caught by CBS cameras on the sideline as the final seconds ticked away in the second quarter Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
“He wanted to go for it,” Reid said. “Not a Hail Mary, something else, but I thought it was best not to do it. It was just — he’s a competitive kid, and he wants to take advantage of every opportunity.”
Mahomes was miffed with the play before, a draw to Jerick McKinnon that netted 6 yards.
“Really, if you heard the words that were said, that wasn’t — I don’t know how it looked to you guys, but that wasn’t a confrontation at all,” Reid said. “That’s not what it was.”
Mahomes wanted the chance to throw a sideline route and maybe inch closer to field-goal range heading into halftime, he said after the game.
Far from a heated exchange, Mahomes said he was telling Bieniemy: “I’m not going to turn it over. I’ll get it out.”
But Kansas City’s coaching staff preferred to regroup in the halftime locker room and protect the 14-10 lead.
Maybe it was the fact that the Colts, who stunned the Chiefs with a late touchdown for a 20-17 win, were getting pressure on Mahomes while dropping seven into coverage and rushing only the defensive line.
Maybe it was the fact that the coaching staff didn’t believe Matt Ammendola — who stepped in for a second straight week with Harrison Butker still hurt — had the kicking range to attempt anything longer than 40 yards anyway, which seems likely given the decisions made in the fourth quarter.
Regardless, Mahomes wanted it known that he wanted to go after points.
“It was a tough situation,” he said. “Me, I’m on the field, I’m playing, I always want to try and go score. That’s who I am, but that’s their job is to make sure they manage the game the right way.”
Mahomes called it “probably the smart decision,” especially since the Chiefs were set to receive the second-half kickoff.
“But I’m always going to be wanting to score, and I pretty much just said, ‘Let me have a chance at it,’” Mahomes said.
