NFL: Kansas City Chiefs projected to add Chicago Bears WR in 2024.
Travis Kelce isn’t making excuses for the Kansas City Chiefs in the wake of their 20-14 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Christmas Day.
On the latest episode of the New Heights podcast Presented by Wave Sports + Entertainment (starts at 37:55 mark), Kelce called their performance in that game “embarrassing” and they “gave them (the Raiders) a present” like Santa Claus.
Kelce added it’s a “frustrating f–king experience” for the team after losing for the third time in the past four weeks. “Everybody’s just got to f–king do their job,” Kelce said while noting:
It’s not just one guy. It’s not just me playing like dog s–t. It’s not just us not being able to get the run game going. It’s not just us not being on the same page passing wise. Everybody’s in this f–king thing together. Everybody at some point isn’t being accountable.
Every single play is somebody not doing their job, and it’s me … it’s everybody on the team. And whether that’s prep, whether that’s having the confidence and understanding of what the defense is in their coverages, their gaps in the run game, how we’re picking up blitzes, how we’re running routes versus certain coverages. All the above.
Kelce also spoke about throwing his helmet in a moment of frustration and how head coach Andy Reid had a brief talk with him about the situation on the sideline after instructing an equipment manager not to return the helmet:
“He’s looking out for me, and I love him for it. I didn’t go back out there and play good. He wanted to see the fire in me, and I reacted in a bad way. He wanted to just get the best out of me. And right now, I’m just not playing my best football and I got to f–king lock the f–k in and be more accountable for him. Be more accountable for my teammates. I got to keep my f–king cool, man, because as a leader on this team, that’s not how you switch the momentum.”
Monday’s game was arguably the low point of this season for the Chiefs. The 14 points scored were their second-fewest in a game this year, ahead of only their nine-point outing against the Denver Broncos in Week 8.
Even more concerning than the low point total was the Raiders getting two defensive touchdowns on back-to-back plays in the second quarter, including Jack Jones’ pick-six against Patrick Mahomes.
JACK JONES. PICK 6!!!!!<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/LVvsKC?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#LVvsKC</a> | 📺 CBS <a href=”https://t.co/bbgBQLORn6″>pic.twitter.com/bbgBQLORn6</a>
Mahomes’ 14 interceptions are a career high with two games remaining in the regular season. His frustration with the offense has started to show in recent weeks.
“Throughout the season, we’ve shown during drives that we can be a high-powered offense if we don’t hurt ourselves with penalties if we’re not playing first-and-f–king 20,” Kelce said, per ESPN’s Adam Teicher. “Every other drive or every other set of first downs just hasn’t been a well-oiled machine like we’ve been in the past and we just got to get everybody on the same f–king page.
“Maybe that’s just getting into the facility and just talking things out together. Maybe that’s getting a few reps after practice. Maybe that’s getting a few more reps, mental reps with each other in the film room. Whatever it is, we got to do something else because it’s been pretty consistent that we haven’t been on the same page. We just got to take a little bit more ownership in what we’re doing. And I’m not saying that I’m out of this. I’m the main part of this and you got to try and find a way to clean this s–t up.”
Per The Ringer’s Sheil Kapadia, the Chiefs had their worst offensive game by expected points added per drive of the Mahomes era against the Raiders.
Sheil Kapadia
@SheilKapadia
They’re now averaging 21.7 PPG on offense. Worst they’ve been with Mahomes in a full season previously was 27.3.<br><br>Chiefs all the way down to 11th in offensive success rate and 11th in EPA per drive with two games left. <a href=”https://t.co/LMLCsv0qsH”>https://t.co/LMLCsv0qsH</a>
The Raiders won this game despite getting zero completions and zero passing yards from quarterback Aidan O’Connell in the final three quarters. Zamir White, who started at running back in place of an injured Josh Jacobs, ran for 145 yards against the Chiefs.
Monday’s loss dropped the Chiefs to 9-6 and unable to clinch a first-round bye for the first time since Mahomes became the full-time starting quarterback in 2018. They have yet to lock up a playoff spot, though that can happen this week with either a win or tie vs. the Cincinnati Bengals or losses/ties by the Raiders and Denver Broncos.
