NEW ORLEANS — The Eagles have one of the best fourth-down weapons the NFL has ever seen in the Tush Push.
The Chiefs? They have a fourth-down weapon of their own, and he wears No. 15.
Patrick Mahomes is great on every down, but he is particularly deadly on fourth down.
The Chiefs do not go for it on fourth down nearly as much as the Eagles (27 to 16 this season), but when they do, the Chiefs usually put the ball in Mahomes’ hands and it usually works.
“We all know growing up watching Michael Jordan, there’s a good chance he’s going to make a play, he’s going to make a shot,” Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy said. “I don’t care how, when or where he’s going to do it, and there’s going to be some he misses, but in the end, we know he’s getting the ball and he’s going to make the shot. And I’m not trying to compare Patrick to Michael. But I think there’s some evidence now that what Patrick’s doing in his career at 29 years old, he’s done a lot of good things. I think it’s exciting for all of us to understand that in big-time moments these plays he’s making are rare.”
Last year in the Super Bowl, the Chiefs only attempted one fourth down, but it came in the most pressure-packed moment you could imagine.
It came in overtime and the Chiefs had a fourth-and-1 from their own 34.
Rather than give the 49ers the ball back, the Chiefs went for it and Mahomes got around the right side of the defense for eight yards and a first down.
The drive continued and ended with a touchdown pass to Mecole Hardman to win the game.
“He just has this knack of wanting to make big-time plays in big-time moments,” Nagy said. “I just think back to the Super Bowl last year when we had to have that fourth down. There’s different ways we can get the ball in his hands whether it’s an RPO, whether it’s a naked, a bootleg or whether it’s a dropback. … He’s got a knack. He’s got the DNA. He’s got things that a lot of people don’t have. In that moment you want to understand he’s going to have a lot of success. You feel good about it.”
Mahomes has completed 24 of his 40 fourth-down attempts with 23 of those going for first downs.
Of his 13 carries on fourth downs, 11 have gone for first downs. He has only been sacked once in 40 fourth-down drop-backs in his career.
On fourth-and-3 or less, Mahomes is 20-of-26 for 19 first downs and he’s run for 10 first downs on 11 rushing attempts.
“It’s kind of like that win-or-go-home mentality that you have for the playoffs,” Mahomes said. “You have to go out there and execute at the highest level in the highest-leveraged positions. I think coach Reid has prepared us for those moments in training camp and throughout the season. He puts us in situations where you have to make those big plays.”
In the AFC Championship game, Mahomes kept a touchdown drive going in the second quarter with a six-yard run on fourth-and-1.
“He does a better job than anybody else making sure the pressure of that moment isn’t too big for him,” Nagy said. “That allows him to make successful plays.”
Kansas City was third in the NFL this season in fourth-down efficiency, converting 70.6 percent of their attempts.
Only the Commanders (87 percent) and Bills (72.7) were better.
The Chiefs expect the Eagles to be aggressive on fourth down on Sunday and they know they can be, as well, with Mahomes on their side.
“Fourth downs have been good for us,” Reid said. “We have trust in our guys, trust in Patrick. And we trust in our game plan. If we’ve got something that we feel is a viable play for that situation, we’re going to use it, within reason. But most of all, having trust in Patrick and the players, is big. And knowing Patrick will take care of the football the right way, whether we’re running it, optioning it or throwing the football.”
