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Mloe68

Mloe68 1,521

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13 minutes ago, Marleydawg said:

Yup.  Mahomes was pretty upright (except when he was toting the rock at the goal line -- WTF??!) on Sunday...  Pretty sure Pittsburgh is going to rough him up.  Big test for the O line.

Steelers had 7 sacks vs Cleveland. Almost unfathomable they turned the ball over that many times and didn't lose. 

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Mloe68

Mloe68 1,521

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On 9/10/2018 at 10:27 AM, Evad said:

Mahomes played decent, he made a few really good throws and a few not so good.  15 of 27 for 256 is just good,  4 td's, with two being

a one yard forward pitch is also good.  The Chiefs would have lost that game if not for the special teams play, and an outstanding

day for Tyreek Hill. 

AFC Offensive Player of the Week. Not bad for only playing "decent."  LOL

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Calichief

Calichief 3,017

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1 minute ago, jetlord said:

Congrats to Mahomes, but it seems there was a little prejudice there.  Giving it to the hyped rookie makes a good story, but Hill had a better game and Fitzpatrick had better stats against N.O.  Glad Mahomes won, I'm a homer, but it was a little surprising. 

NFC vs. afc 

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Handswarmer

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3 minutes ago, jetlord said:

Congrats to Mahomes, but it seems there was a little prejudice there.  Giving it to the hyped rookie makes a good story, but Hill had a better game and Fitzpatrick had better stats against N.O.  Glad Mahomes won, I'm a homer, but it was a little surprising. 

Especially when Flacco played better and only had to play 2 and half qtrs for the win

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Mloe68

Mloe68 1,521

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1 minute ago, kkuenn said:

Damn ap to read the rest....can you paste it?

 

Patrick Mahomes film review: He was even better than you thought

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By Seth Keysor Sep 12, 2018comment-icon.png 48 save-icon.png

Permit me a momentary digression … have you ever had food that was so hyped up you were afraid to try it? That was described as so delicious, so delightful, so utterly perfect that you knew trying it would inevitably lead to that “well … it’s good for sure, but …” feeling of disappointed expectations? I have.

The most worried I’ve ever been trying something was the Z-Man sandwich at Joe’s Kansas City Bar-B-Que. I was told so many times by so many people that it would be one of the best things I ever ate. This happened so often that by the time I actually sat down in Joe’s all those years ago, I was filled with as much dread as anticipation. Then I took a bite, and I realized that (to steal a quote) for once, the gossips were right.

I bring that up because the feeling I had firing up Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ “All-22” film for the first time carried that same feeling of excitement mixed with dread. Mahomes appeared to play very well in the broadcast and was receiving universal praise. The analyst in me needed the truth that only film could tell, but the fan in me was very afraid that I’d walk away feeling disappointed in being wrong about how well Mahomes had played Sunday.

Well, I was wrong in a sense. Because Mahomes didn’t play as well as I thought … he played better. The film was worth the hype, and then some.

For a primer of the unique methodology of grading quarterbacks, check out this story. This system has been developed over the course of the last four years. The goal is to separate the quarterback’s play from the coaching, his blocking, and his weapons and figure out exactly how the most important player on the field did on his own. And Mahomes, while not flawless, was absolutely fantastic in his first outing as a starter.

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For a frame a reference to compare, here’s a look at what Alex Smith averaged over the course of the 2017 season using the same (though slightly modified) system. “Saves” are fairly similar to “plays created.”

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The first thing that stands out after charting Mahomes’ game Sunday is how little he took off the table for the Chiefs in terms of happy feet snaps and missed shots. While Mahomes had plays where he bailed out on the pocket, there wasn’t one where legitimate pressure was coming his way and he wasn’t taking free yards scrambling with his receivers covered. The closest Mahomes came to being marked with happy feet was a play that actually showed his growth as a quarterback.

Here, the Chiefs were facing a third and 2 – a “no need to force it” situation. Every receiver is covered on all-22 except Sammy Watkins deep near the end of the play. What separates Mahomes’ actions from a happy feet snap are his eyes. While there’s no real pressure, watch where he looks as he moves around the pocket: always looking at his receivers. It’s not until he sees a relatively easy 1st down available that Mahomes takes off, getting a fresh set of downs with his feet.

Taking the safe, conservative play isn’t a bad thing. When the first down is within easy scrambling distance and the only semi-open receiver is 30 yards down the field, it’s time to buy a fresh set of downs. This type of play is something Mahomes needed to show on Sunday: live to fight another down. A player with his mentality can be a double-edged sword, especially if he doesn’t learn to occasionally take the path of least resistance. The fact that he’s doing so already in his second start is a good sign.

The lack of missed shots by Mahomes was noticeable on film. He just didn’t “miss” open receivers that he should have seen, except one snap. And that snap was a situation where pressure was coming, which forced him off his spot just before the throw could be made, so marking that down as a missed shot was being quite picky as a grader. Watch Watkins (middle receiver to the right) above, then watch the pressure from the left force Mahomes to move right.

This is another play where Mahomes didn’t try to force things, smartly throwing the ball away. For a quarterback who was supposed to be taking too many risks, he did a good job knowing when to hold and when to fold Sunday.

While Mahomes did throw two potential picks, it should be worth noting that one of them was on a Hail Mary down the middle of the field to Travis Kelce at the end of the first half. Such throws are essentially toss-ups and don’t reflect a quarterback’s decision making at all. The only questionable decision Mahomes made resulted in a potential pick came more due to ball placement than the decision.

Here, Mahomes is forced to climb the pocket due to pressure. Receiver Chris Conley has sat down on his route and really should have drifted to his right to take advantage of the free space there. Conley is a very good contested catch receiver, and there’s no problem with Mahomes trying to get him the ball in this situation. The problem is placement. Rather than putting the ball on the other side of the defender, Mahomes puts it right on Conley, making it within reach of the defender and a potential pick (and before someone in the comments asks, Kelce wasn’t open. Prior to the throw, he’s being bracketed by two safeties).

The lack of mistakes by Mahomes is fun to discuss. But of course, that pales in comparison to some of the fantastic throws and plays he made through the course of game.

Mahomes consistently and repeatedly threw the ball with great velocity and accuracy, despite facing more pressure than Smith faced in an average game last season. In the above play, as Mahomes is getting ready to throw, he knows he has a defender bearing down on him from his left. But he doesn’t even acknowledge it and throws an absolute strike to fullback Anthony Sherman. This repeated itself throughout the game, as Mahomes kept his eyes down the field under pressure, even when forced to move around because of it.

On some plays, pressure appeared like it was about to make its way through and Mahomes would move away from it, but he was always careful to not move too far and put himself in a bad position. Watch as Mahomes moves away from a defender who has a clear shot.

Pocket presence isn’t just about knowing where to go, it’s about knowing where not to go. Mahomes moves right away from the temporarily unblocked Chargers defender, but stops short when he sees he’s about to create a free rushing lane for the edge rusher. All while keeping his eyes down the field and finding receiver Tyreek Hill for a short gain. That type of understanding of how to move is something quarterbacks generally either have or do not have.

Mahomes also demonstrated a great deal more control over the offense than even the most optimistic Chiefs fans expected, killing multiple plays and audibling into something different. One such play was the downfield shot to Hill that resulted in a big gain (though part of that was due to a fantastic Hill catch, as the throw wasn’t as accurate as most of Mahomes’ throws on the day).

While the throw wasn’t great, the fact that Mahomes killed into an aggressive shot down the field that perfectly took advantage of the coverage the Chargers employed might be the most exciting thing about the game, even though it was easy to miss. It means Mahomes properly identified exactly what coverage the Chargers would play and adjusted into something designed to torch it. Those are the things many didn’t expect from a first-year starter, and when combined with his natural arm talent, make him horrifying for defensive coordinators to face.

Speaking of arm talent, there are a half-dozen plays that could demonstrate Mahomes making throws that almost no other quarterback in the league could even try, starting with the very first video clip in this article (a rocket fired from sidearm while getting hit by a defensive lineman). Making a choice is difficult, but it’s worth noting that the arm talent allows Mahomes to make throws into windows that would be shut for other players. This can be seen in a pair of throws to Watkins, one of which was dropped and one of which was caught.

There was some talk from Chiefs fans after the game that Mahomes should have “taken a little off” this particular throw, but when you see it from this angle and slowed down you understand why the heat was required to even attempt it. The inside linebacker does a nice job recognizing the coming throw and moving toward the throwing lane. He even gets a hand up and, in a fair world, should be able to tip the ball. Except facing Mahomes is not a fair world, and the ball comes screaming out of his hand it’s launched from a catapult. Had Watkins caught that, he had some room to roam. And given the angle the safety was taking, Watkins may have even taken it to the house.

Watkins made up for the drop later in the game by catching a similar throw that, if anything, was even hotter to handle.

That ball is en fuego. There’s no analysis that does it justice. And once again, underneath defenders are trying to get in the way. There’s just no closing in on a throw moving that fast. That thing was probably whistling through the air. The fact that Watkins caught it is a testament to his hands and hopefully means he’s adjusting to catching rockets.

Mahomes demonstrated a few more traits that are crucial to success as a quarterback. One of them was fooling defenders with his eyes and body language, something he’s shown a knack for but has been a inconsistent with during the preseason. He threw a bad interception due to staring down his target against the Falcons. He seems to have learned from this, and demonstrated it on multiple plays like this big completion to (who else?) Hill.

On this play, Mahomes has Conley open in the flat for a short gain that could go as far as 6-8 yards. However, Hill has done a good job finding another soft spot in the zone. Mahomes starts off looking at Hill, then adjusts his gaze to Conley as though he’d moved on in his progression. This causes the zone defender to break toward Conley, opening up a lane to Hill. Mahomes fires another dart for a completion, taking the bigger chunk of yards rather than the smaller, safer throw.

It’s worth noting that this is another play where pressure could have easily rattled Mahomes, but doesn’t. A stunting defender is able to get a bead on him even as he calmly takes the time to look off the underneath defender so he has a clear path to Hill. Mahomes doesn’t even bother to glance at the rusher and doesn’t let it affect his throw at all. It’s worth noting that while the offense line was OK against the Chargers, the fact that pressure didn’t seem too impactful on the game was in large part due how little Mahomes allowed it to affect him.

It should be noted that of the six passes that were marked as inaccurate, three of them occurred because he was throwing the ball while being hit. Also, not one of those throws was put in a spot to be a potential interception. Several other throws that appeared inaccurate during broadcast viewing were not actually inaccurate, but a victim of circumstance.

An example of this came on a throw that would be played and replayed for days had it not been for an uncalled penalty. Here, Mahomes attempts to find All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce while on the run from pressure. Watch Kelce’s route and how long it takes him to unglue himself from a holding defender at the stem of his route.

Kelce was rightfully bothered after this play. Had his defender not been allowed to hold him in place for so long, he would have been right where the ball was placed by Mahomes and yet another highlight reel would be made.

A final note about Mahomes is how plays were made when it counted most. There are plenty of examples of this, but the best one can be found with 2:54 left in the 3rd quarter with the Chiefs deep in their own territory facing third and 12. If the Chiefs weren’t able to convert here, the Chargers have the opportunity to seize momentum. This is precisely where the offense, as good as it was last year, struggled to make things happen: putting teams away.

It’s just one game, but so far it appears Mahomes has no issues putting teams away, even if he has to make a miraculous play to do so.

The presence of mind Mahomes shows to calmly continue to survey the field even as he escapes the pocket and has a defender running at him is almost disturbing. Most people aren’t this calm looking for a lost remote control. Then the arm talent to put the ball 30 yards past the line of scrimmage into the waiting hands of Hill. It’s another throw that perhaps only a few other quarterbacks on the planet can even attempt.

Mahomes’ first game as a starter was a resounding success, and was considerably better on film than it appeared. It’s unreasonable to expect him to play at such a high level every week, and a Pittsburgh defense that has had the Chiefs’ number for years is looming. But early returns indicate that the Chiefs made the right move in turning to the youngster, and there’s plenty of room for growth yet.

(Top photo of Patrick Mahomes: Kelvin Kuo / The Associated Press)

seth-keysor1.jpg
Seth Keysor is The Athletic's resident Kansas City Chiefs film analyst. He previously covered the Chiefs at SB Nation for more than seven years. Seth is also an attorney and pastor in Minnesota. Follow Seth on Twitter @RealMNchiefsfan.
 
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Evad

Evad 242

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46 minutes ago, Mloe68 said:

Yep. I like to back up my opinion with evidence. 

https://theathletic.com/520507/2018/09/12/chiefs-film-review-patrick-mahomes-was-even-better-than-you-thought/?source=dailyemail

sounds like to me you like to "backup" your opinion on the subjective opinions of complete strangers, who may have or may have NOT even watched the game.  You seemed smarter than that from earlier posts.  Even the majority of Chiefs fans who have publicly expressed an opinion chided the selection of Mahomes over Tyreek Hill.  There should be a limit to being a Mahomer, but you have not reached it yet.

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xen

xen 1,010,220

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6 hours ago, Evad said:

sounds like to me you like to "backup" your opinion on the subjective opinions of complete strangers, who may have or may have NOT even watched the game.  You seemed smarter than that from earlier posts.  Even the majority of Chiefs fans who have publicly expressed an opinion chided the selection of Mahomes over Tyreek Hill.  There should be a limit to being a Mahomer, but you have not reached it yet.

Ah you crazy jaded KC folks.... at some point, people are going to have to start realizing this is for real.  

Yes i know i know, I'm a Mahomer... but watching the all 22 was amazeballs.  Kid is the real McCoy.

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Mloe68

Mloe68 1,521

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6 hours ago, Evad said:

sounds like to me you like to "backup" your opinion on the subjective opinions of complete strangers, who may have or may have NOT even watched the game.  You seemed smarter than that from earlier posts.  Even the majority of Chiefs fans who have publicly expressed an opinion chided the selection of Mahomes over Tyreek Hill.  There should be a limit to being a Mahomer, but you have not reached it yet.

Just plain comedy. I even provided a complete All-22 breakdown of his entire game and you still won’t relent from your laughable believe he was little better than decent.  I’ve done all I can do.  2+2 just isn’t 4 to some people. Moving on. 

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Chiefmanzada

Chiefmanzada 466

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On 9/10/2018 at 6:58 AM, Gil said:

Tyreek’s long TD reception - Morse whiffed his block and the DT was in Mahomes’ face immediately. He stood in and delivered a perfect dime. No way Alex makes that throw or even attempt it. We all watched him take that sack for 5 years. It’s a new day. 

Our Oline was bad for years. Smith got hit many many times from the start of his Chief career, probably made him paranoid

 

anyways, Mahomes is having time to throw on several occasions. Could be because the OL are more motivated to block for their spectacular QB, unlike Smith

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jetlord

jetlord 10,210

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22 hours ago, Evad said:

sounds like to me you like to "backup" your opinion on the subjective opinions of complete strangers, who may have or may have NOT even watched the game.  You seemed smarter than that from earlier posts.  Even the majority of Chiefs fans who have publicly expressed an opinion chided the selection of Mahomes over Tyreek Hill.  There should be a limit to being a Mahomer, but you have not reached it yet.

Claiming that Hill deserved the POW over Mahomes doesn't diminish the performance of Mahomes.  He made a number of mistakes but no QB goes through a whole game without some.  He made a couple of incredible throws that we would never have seen from Smith.  His game was worthy of recognition,whether rookie or not. .

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