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Patrick Mahomes needs support as he leaves the field against the Titans
Photo: Mark Zaleski / AP
American football coaches don't like to see their quarterbacks throw themselves headlong into opponents, even when it comes to crucial inches in the game and throwing the ball is not an option.
This is because the risk of injury in such situations is high and often the entire game, basically the entire franchise, is designed for this one player who is supposed to bring the team to the Super Bowl.
For Patrick Mahomes, the worries of the Kansas City Chiefs are likely to be particularly great.
The 26-year-old has led the Chiefs into the Super Bowl for the past two seasons, and Mahomes brought the title to Missouri in February 2020.
And above all, the superstar was given a $ 500 million contract last year.
In the devastating 3:27 defeat of the Chiefs at the Tennessee Titans, Mahomes not only showed one of his weakest performances in the Chiefs jersey.
For the first time, the Chiefs stayed with Mahomes in the regular season without a touchdown, who also had to take a hard collision with the knee of an opponent.
If he fell, Mahomes wanted to get rid of the ball quickly before he hit the leg of Titans defender Jeffery Simmons.
Mahomes looked dazed
Mahomes tried to get up, but looked visibly dazed and only made it to the sidelines with the help of other players.
The so-called Concussion Protocol, in which players are examined for concussions, turned out to be negative, in theory he should have even continued to play.
Chief coach Andy Reid left his protégé on the bench and brought his substitute.
In the coming week, Mahomes should be operational again, as Reid said.
Mahomes is urgently needed: The Chiefs only won three of the first seven games, the now highest defeat in almost nine years only means the low point of a botched start to the season.
The reasons are complex. In addition to one of the statistically weakest defensives, there is also no protection for Mahomes, against the Titans he was sagged four times, i.e. knocked to the ground with the ball. But even Mahomes himself is not playing at the level of previous years this season, in the past two seasons he only had eleven interceptions, i.e. passes to the opponent. This season he's already at nine after seven games.
The Titans, however, are on the direct path to the playoffs with five wins and two defeats.
Against the Chiefs, in addition to pass recipient AJ Brown, running back Derrick Henry, who is considered the best runner in the league, once again towered over the top.
But Henry provided an unusual highlight for him: He got the ball in front of the opposing end zone and instead of carrying it into the end zone himself, he threw it to MyCole Pruitt for a touchdown.
hba / AP
