Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill Have Done It Again

The Chiefs' superstar quarterback wasn't surprised when the team's elite trio stepped up to win Thursday's overtime thriller.

Of the Kansas City Chiefs' losses this season, three of them have involved the team shooting itself in the foot, getting outclassed, and subsequently not being able to overcome adversity. On Thursday night against the Los Angeles Chargers, the vibes were starting to feel that way late into the evening — until the Chiefs of old showed up.

Led by the all-time great trio of Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill, the Chiefs' offense exploded down the stretch of the fourth quarter and into overtime of their 34-28 win. In the final 10 minutes of the game alone, Mahomes had nearly 200 passing yards and threw three touchdowns on 13 pass attempts. The key to the comeback? According to Mahomes, simply stepping up when they were needed the most.

“I think these last few weeks, you’ve seen it in the defense and the swagger that they’ve had," Mahomes said after the game. "You’ve seen guys step up on that defense and make plays whenever their number is called. You’ve seen the offense, even when games are ugly and they’re not the games you’re used to having, stepping up and making drives to end the game to win football games and that’s what happened today. The defense held us in that game; all those fourth-down stops against a really, really good offense. Then, at the end of the day, the offense, we stepped up in those last three drives and got down there and scored when we needed to.”

Dec 16, 2021; Inglewood, California, USA; Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) celebrates with quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) after scoring a touchdown in overtime against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

It wasn't too long ago that these same Chiefs were 3-4 through seven games and looked like a completely different team. A combination of health, personnel switches and a couple of outside additions have helped them find their winning ways again, as Andy Reid's bunch is riding a seven-game win streak. Kansas City is now poised to win the AFC West yet again and is still very much alive in the conference's race for the No. 1 playoff seed in the AFC. 

Despite how much it looked like the Chiefs were headed toward a second loss this season to the Chargers, they persevered. They dug deep, recognized their mistakes and learned from them. Their best players made the best plays in the best moments, just like they have in years past. In a league that forces teams to evaluate both the process and result in order to achieve greatness, the Chiefs had both rolling as their Week 15 game came to a close.

Dec 16, 2021; Inglewood, California, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) runs the ball against the Los Angeles Chargers in overtime at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

“If you want to be great and if you want to be a part of a great team, you have to believe that until that final whistle blows, that you have a chance to go out there and win the football game," Mahomes said. "Obviously, it sucks in the moment. I promise you that I felt as bad as everyone and knew how bad it looked, but you get another chance in this league. Not even if it is just the next drive, the next game, whatever it is, you are getting another chance and you have to be ready for that moment.”

Read More: Four Takeaways From the Chiefs' 34-28 Win Over the Chargers