The Kansas City Chiefs are entering uncharted territory right now. With a shocking 20-10 home loss to the Houston Texans, they’re now 6-7 for the season and look like a long shot to make the playoffs.
Desperation and pressure keep mounting on this team. That may have been why Andy Reid made one of the most questionable decisions of his Hall of Fame coaching career.
With the game tied at ten and with over ten minutes left to play, Reid opted to go for it on his own 31-yard line. If the decision wasn’t controversial enough, he also chose to have Patrick Mahomes attempt a pass out of shotgun instead of handing the ball over to short-yardage specialist Kareem Hunt. As expected, things didn’t end well.
Rashee Rice dropped a crucial pass, and the Texans ultimately marched down the field to grab a 17-10 lead. However, when asked about that call, Mahomes had his coach’s back:
“I’ll never question the decision to go for it on 4th down,” Mahomes said, per Rob Collins of FOX4 Kansas City.
Mahomes tipped his hat to Texans star CB Derek Stingley Jr. During the play, and he shouldered the blame for the botched pass:
"They did a good job of passing off the crossers," Mahomes said, per ESPN. "I tried to get the ball to Rashee. I think I was a little late. [Stingley.] Made a great play breaking on the ball. We just have to execute at a higher level in those big moments. It's something we haven't done this year."
Andy Reid admits his controversial call was a mistake
Coach Reid, however, didn’t feel the same way. It was the first time in his nearly three decades as a head coach that he had chosen to go for it on fourth down with the game tied and with his offense inside his own 40-yard line:
"I put the guys, offensively, in a tough position with the fourth downs [calls]," Reid said. "I was trying to stay aggressive with it. I take full responsibility for that. I thought we could get it. It's important that you take advantage of opportunities. In hindsight, it was wrong. I messed that one up."
The Chiefs had no margin for error on Sunday night. Now, they might need plenty of help from other teams to have a chance to make the playoffs.
And with three backups in the offensive line and even Travis Kelce dropping crucial passes, this sounds like an uphill battle for the dynasty.