Chiefs Postgame Quotes (Week Four)
Head Coach Andy Reid
Opening statement…
All right, we just had one injury there, so Cole Christiansen pulled his hamstring, he’d be the only guy to mention. Proud of our guys for battling through tonight, there was some changes in momentum there, we were able to get it back and did a nice job with swinging things back the right way. If I had to pick somebody out there, I’d pick (Isiah) Pacheco, for the nice job that he had, right. For our corners, for figuring out what they were doing and shutting them down, so it was good all the way around there.
On what he saw from Patrick Mahomes on the last scramble…
Yeah, that was a good one and something else was called, but it was a good job by him. You can see how competitive he is, he knew he was off the tick that first half, got back on it and a nice show in the second half.
On how he saw Mahomes respond after the two interceptions…
Yeah, it was great. He said something during halftime. He said, ‘We’ll figure it out here, and I’ll get it right.’ And he did.
On what was impressive about Isaiah Pacheco…
How hard he ran.
On the last drive taking over seven minutes but only went half the field and how impressed he was…
That was important, that fourth quarter. We had the ball quite a bit and that’s a good defense too. That’s one of the better defenses in the National Football League. They do a great job there and their quarterback, for a BYU guy, he was on fire, you know.
On the battle the Jets gave them and if the game went differently than they expected coming into it…
I didn’t expect the high and the low part, you know, we started off the game like game busters, had a lot of yards and then two turnovers and some penalties, changed up a little bit. You know, that’s a loaded question, I’m always expecting our guys to do good.
On Zach Wilson coming off one of his worst games and how different his performance tonight was compared to what he saw on film…
Well, we know he’s a good athlete. He’s got a big arm. Listen, we know that he’s got the talent there. He’s a young guy, it’s hard to have patience in New York, I know that. I understand.”
On how proud he is of the defense after the safety and the missed Jets field goal…
Yeah, the field position, we were put in great field position, but defensively we had our back to the wall that first series and other guys they brought up there pretty nice.”
On the hold on Marquez Valdes-Scantling by Sauce Gardner and what he saw…
Listen, I have to go back and look at the tape on it. He was on the other side of the field and they’re aggressive, so they’re going to get a couple of those during the name. Sauce is as good as there is in the League, he may have had a little bit of fabric there.
On Mahomes when things aren’t working for him, what clicks in his mind where he’s able to find other ways to win…
“He’s just so competitive. Never gets down on himself that way. He has that, ‘I’ll fix it. I got it, we’ll fix it, just keep pounding.’ So, yeah, he has that type of mentality.”
On if there was any thought on Pacheco, knowing he was coming back home to New Jersey, playing in front of probably friends and family…
Yeah, he was excited to come back. He was very excited to come back. He’s Jersey proud, man having gone to Rutgers, grew up here as well. He had quite a night.
QB Patrick Mahomes
On his assessment of the game…
I mean it was definitely a fight. We came out hot, obviously struggled. I made two just bad throws where I was trying to lay it over a linebacker and a safety and I just didn’t throw it far enough and it just hit the dude right in the chest. Something you can’t do, but I was proud of how the guys fought. Obviously, the defense kept us in it. And then the offense had two drives in the fourth quarter where we had sustained drives, and that’s a good defense. So, I’m proud of that but obviously a lot to learn from and a lot to correct.
On why the Chiefs have been so good at running the clock out…
Yeah, it’s just guys responding. Obviously, we didn’t play to our level in that second, third quarter, but guys responded and kept just pushing and that’s good things to see. I mean a little similar to last year. It’s not always going to be pretty for four quarters, especially when you’re playing a good defense like that. But whenever the opportunity arises, it’s about going down there and finishing. Obviously, we didn’t do that the first game and I’m glad we’ve been able to do that in these last few.
On whether this game is a reality check…
No, that’s a good defense. I knew it was going to be a fight going against that defense. I thought it was kind of almost out of the norm to start that fast against them. But I think just learning, correcting and trying to learn from our mistakes. Obviously, I have to be better with the football. Can’t turn it over and put that pressure on our defense, but they stepped up for me. It’s football, it’s the NFL. Not everything’s going to be easy. You have to find a way to win different ways and I’ve learned that over my career.
On whether it’s meaningful to prove they can grind out wins…
I think proving that you can have two or three quarters where you literally aren’t scoring. You’re not scoring. Nothing’s going well, and how do you guys respond whenever the going gets tough and I thought the guys responded well. We were behind the chains a lot even on those drives and we were able to fight our way to get those first downs. So, it definitely was a tough battle, but we found a way to get the win.
On what head coach Andy Reid’s message was at halftime…
I think it was just, let’s keep playing together, keep fighting. I took accountability. I knew I put us in two bad positions at the end of the half and in the early second quarter. No one points fingers in that locker room, we all play together. You know not everything’s going to be pretty, but the guys responded. We came together and found a way to get a win.
On how he responds when things aren’t working…
I’ve just learned you can only control the next play. You can only go out there and do what you need to do for that next play. Nothing in the past matters. I don’t know if it’s coming from Texas Tech or how I played growing up. It’s just, you keep throwing, you keep putting it out there and letting your guys have chances. You can’t worry about the interceptions that have happened in the past. You have to keep fighting and that’s something that I believe in. Obviously, I try to be more careful with the football but at the same time I have to be me. I have to go out there and give guys chances to make plays and that’s what I try to do.
On who picks him up…
I think it’s just the whole team honestly, I mean it’s everybody. No one ever points fingers on this team. It’s not just me, I think out of everybody, if something goes bad, you pick that guy up and you keep fighting. That’s why I think we’ve won a lot of football games here. It doesn’t always have to be perfect, but we’re going to respond and have each other’s backs and that’s what makes great football teams.
On him being fired up after the 25-yard run on the final drive…
We just needed that play at that time. We were trying to get into field goal range. We were trying to do what we can to keep the defense off the field. They had been playing their tail off in that second half. I’m a little upset I kind of stumbled, I was thinking I could maybe get around the side a little bit, but I mean it was a big first down and then we were able to kind of keep it moving down the field. I’ve told a lot of people, I’m faster than people think. I don’t run pretty, so people think I’m slow but I move a little bit better than people think.
On the two interceptions…
Yeah, it’s just being greedy, man. Just got to throw the ball away. They covered both the plays well. But instead of just throwing the ball away, I try to make perfect throws. The one to Noah, I saw the guy underneath it. I thought I could throw it to the sideline and him or nobody, maybe get a catch on the sideline, first down. Obviously, I didn’t throw it good enough. Hit the dude right in the chest. And the same with Travis (Kelce), where we’re in that situation where I’m trying to get at least Harrison (Butker) in field goal range, they’re dropping for depth. And I thought Trav had beat his guy, but the whole player was there. I thought I could throw it over him and obviously I couldn’t and so he made a good play on it. So, you just got to know when you can take those chances and obviously at those points in the game, I can’t do that. I’ve got to throw the football away and just live to play another play.
On whether he’s satisfied with the team after the first month of the season…
Yeah, I mean it’s always good when you find the ways to win. I think I’ve learned in my six or seven years, you can win pretty, but you have to win ugly, too, in order to win Super Bowls. For me, even though I hate it while it’s happening, I felt like it makes you better in the end if you win games like this, where not everything’s going perfect. So, we did that last year and we’re going to try to do that again this year and then try to keep getting better so we’re playing our best football at the end of the season.
On the environment at MetLife Stadium…
It was awesome, honestly. I got to come here for my first year twice, two times in three weeks, but obviously didn’t get to play in the game, but the atmosphere was awesome. Sunday night. From the intros, all the way to the end of the game, the fans were in it. My dad played for the Mets, so I know the fans really support their teams. I was glad to be here and get to play in the same state and kind of the same type of fan base that my dad played in.
On Isiah Pacheco’s play in his return to New Jersey…
Yeah, he’s Jersey’s own, man. He went to Rutgers. He played in Jersey. He loves it, kind of how I am with Texas. He has a lot of pride in it. I could see it from the first snap. You can see it in his eyes, this meant more to him. He did a great job catching the ball, running the ball. I haven’t looked at the stats, but he put up great stats and made some big runs when we really needed them.
On his 200th career passing touchdown…
It means a ton because the people that are on the list, the quarterbacks that came before me, but you’ve just got to keep going. The game’s changed, so I think someone will pass me before too long. So, you just go out there and keep playing. The one thing that doesn’t change is Super Bowl’s, so I’m going to keep getting those.
On whether he was surprised how wide open things were on his first down run…
No, the offensive line, first off, did a good job blocking. That pass rush is one of the top in the NFL, if not the top. It kind of opened up, but there was a lot of attention, that’s why there was a flag, there was a lot of attention on Travis, which is important. So, once he kind of went to the right, he took like three people with him, and it opened up for me. Like I said, I’m a little faster than people think I am, so maybe one day I’ll get a spy. That’s my goal. If I can get a spy, then I’ll know I made it.
On facing adversity and the character of the team…
A lot of the guys, even though they’re young, we’ve been together now. We’ve played in a lot of different style of football games and we’ve gotten better from it. Like I said before, whenever stuff’s going bad, no one’s pointing fingers. I just believe the defense is going to get a stop when we need to get a stop, and the defense believes in me that I’m going to find a way to get the offense going and score points. Every time we’re walking and crossing from the defense going off and the offense going off, both ways it’s like, “Hey, we got you,” or “Hey, I got you right here.” I think that’s a true brotherhood. We believe in each other whenever times are tough. That’s why we found ways to win games like this.
RB Isiah Pacheco
On what tonight’s win meant to him…
It means a lot to me and the team, most definitely. Picking up one another. Playing hard for each other. We’re a great team over there.
On playing in New Jersey…
Oh, it was a great feeling. Never been in this stadium before. It’s a new stadium. First professional real football game inside the stadium. It’s a great feeling. Blessed to see my family here, supporting me and not only that, get a victory.
On if he ever imagined he’d score at MetLife Stadium and how it felt…
I didn’t really picture it, but focusing and staying patient, and just listening, and doing my job allowed me to get into the zone, and finish with the guys up front.
On how impactful tonight’s win is…
Oh, it’s awesome. It shows you how much we play for one another and not only that, we’ve got a lot more ball to play and a lot more time to build with each other.
LB Drue Tranquill
On tonight’s game…
Well, first I’d like to give hats off to Zach Wilson, the Jets offense, their OC (Offensive Coordinator Nathaniel) Hackett. They had a great plan and for as much criticism as they’ve taken, I thought Zach came out and made some really, really good throws. I thought he competed, and I thought their entire offense competed. The world champs coming into your house and the way they competed down 14 or 17 points, hats off to those guys, they really gave us a tough battle tonight. It was a good one.
On grinding out a win…
I think to be a World Champion you have to be able to win in a lot of different styles, and every game is going to be different. Last week, we jumped out to a big lead against Chicago (Bears) and we were able to hold onto that, and kind of make them one-dimensional on offense. This week, we jump out to a big lead, suddenly their defense blows up, gets a safety. We’re on our heels. Pat (Mahomes) throws a couple interceptions. They get a couple turnovers playing good ball on defense and now we’re forced in a tough game, close game there in the fourth quarter. So, you’ve just got to learn to win a lot of different ways and we were able to do that tonight.
On Patrick Mahomes’ performance…
Well, that’s why 15’s the greatest in the world. Even on a night when he throws two or three picks, whatever it was, for him to be able to convert on 3-and-20 with his legs, for him to be able to convert on 3-and-8 down there to close out the game, it speaks to the toughness of our offensive line, and it speaks to the toughness and the grit of the entire offensive personnel, and then the belief this organization has in one-five to get the job done. He was able to get it done. Outstanding job by the offense there in the fourth quarter to close the game out.