Patrick Mahomes may still be working his way back to full strength, but his performance against the Indianapolis Colts gave the Kansas City Chiefs plenty of reason to feel good about where their quarterback is headed.
Mahomes helped Kansas City escape with a 33-30 overtime win Sunday night, throwing for 382 yards and three touchdowns while completing 32 of 47 passes. The performance came one week after a quieter season opener against the Denver Broncos, when he completed 15 of 27 passes for 184 yards.
ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler spoke with an NFL personnel evaluator who came away impressed by Mahomes' progress, particularly the strength behind his throws.
“His ability to drive throws — I thought he was ripping the ball,” the evaluator told Fowler.
Fowler also noted that Mahomes “might not be all the way back” but added that he “isn’t far off,” pointing to the confidence the quarterback showed against Indianapolis.
That was easy to see in the numbers. Mahomes attacked the Colts with far more consistency and looked more comfortable moving around the pocket. Next Gen Stats credited him with a career-high 14 completions on play-action passes for 137 yards and two touchdowns.
The impressive stat lines surely fuel the Chiefs fanbase as Mahomes spent the offseason recovering from surgery on his knee after an injury late last season. His movement drew plenty of attention during training camp.
Two games into the season, Mahomes has already shown signs of moving past those concerns. He still has room to improve, but his arm strength and comfort in the pocket appear to be trending in the right direction.
The Chiefs are 2-0 heading into Week 3, with Mahomes settling back into his MVP form.