CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Ten yards right into a scramble, Patrick Mahomes may have simply slid for a primary down or just ducked out of bounds and moved on to the following play.
As a substitute, the three-time Tremendous Bowl MVP in the reduction of inside and raced one other 23 yards up the sphere, serving to to arrange Spencer Schrader’s 31-yard subject objective as time expired because the Chiefs held on to beat the Carolina Panthers 30-27 on Sunday.
“At that point, yards are more important than getting out of bounds,” Mahomes mentioned. “With three timeouts, I just tried to just cut through and Justin Watson had a great block and was able to get down the field and get out of bounds.”
The sport-winning drive was the twenty first of Mahomes’ profession, and the Chiefs gained a recreation determined within the closing seconds for the fifth time this season. Eight of the Chiefs’ wins have come by one-score margins.
“You always want to have some blowouts and be a little calmer in the fourth quarter, but I’ve always said it could be a good thing when you get to the playoffs later in the season knowing that you have been in those moments before, and knowing how to attack it play by play not making it too big of a moment,” Mahomes mentioned.
Then he smiled and mentioned: “But I would say this more than anybody, I would love to win a game not by the very last play.”
Mahomes accomplished 27 of 37 passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns in his first recreation at Financial institution of America Stadium and ran for 60 yards — together with 33 on that last-minute play — because the Chiefs (10-1) scored on six of their eight possessions.
Noah Grey caught 4 passes for 66 yards and scored two touchdowns for the second straight week, and DeAndre Hopkins additionally discovered the top zone for the two-time defending Tremendous Bowl champions. Kareem Hunt ran for 68 yards on 16 carries and caught three passes for 19 yards.
Bryce Younger performed effectively for Carolina (3-8), ending 21 of 35 for 262 yards and a landing whereas main the Panthers again from an 11-point deficit within the fourth quarter to tie the sport on Chuba Hubbard’s 1-yard landing run and 2-point conversion with 1:46 remaining.
Panthers coach Dave Canales, who benched Younger earlier this season for veteran Andy Dalton, mentioned final 12 months’s No. 1 total draft decide “absolutely” will stay the group’s beginning QB subsequent week. That’s a break from Canales’ current sample of ready a number of days to call a starter.
“Bryce is certainly making the most of his opportunities,” Canales mentioned. “And he is making a statement to all of us. Showing us he can make plays in critical areas. He did a great job extending today.”
Mentioned Younger: “For me, I just want to focus on what I can control. Regardless, I always have the same mindset and preparation, wanting to be better throughout the week. I am definitely grateful for confidence.”
Nonetheless, there’s room for enchancment.
The Panthers moved the ball effectively however struggled within the crimson zone, leading to subject objectives of 30, 32, 29 and 33 yards for Eddy Pineiro, essentially the most correct kicker in NFL historical past.
The Chiefs wasted no time setting the tone as Samaje Perine returned the opening kickoff 56 yards and Mahomes discovered Grey for a 35-yard landing strike on the third play of scrimmage for a 7-0 lead. Grey went 9 video games with out a TD catch earlier than hauling in two final week in opposition to Buffalo. His 11-yard rating late within the second quarter gave him two extra in opposition to the Panthers.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid praised Mahomes’ poise however mentioned he was involved about his group’s 9 penalties for 90 yards.
