‘Come on, man’: Lions, Chiefs react to Patrick Mahomes’ behind-the-back pass

Whether it’s the preseason, regular season, or postseason, Patrick Mahomes continues to prove that he is truly one of a kind, thrilling football fans with mind-blowing plays that only he can pull off. That much was evident during Saturday’s preseason game between the Detroit Lions and the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead.

With the Chiefs facing a third-and-three at the Lions’ 33-yard line, Mahomes, a two-time MVP, flipped a short pass behind Travis Kelce for an eight-yard gain, moving the chains. . The play ended Mahomes’ second and final drive in what would be a narrow 24-23 victory for the Lions.

Mahomes told NFL Network that he gave the pass “out of spite” because Kelce didn’t run the correct route.

“I didn’t do it to look cool,” Mahomes told reporters after the game. “I literally did it like I was, like I was mad. I was like, “Why didn’t you just run the course like that?” It just worked.”

Kelce, however, had a slightly different take on the play, attributing some of the confusion to Mahomes.

“You know he’s got the voice … so he kind of mumbled the play,” Kelce said during a midgame interview. “I couldn’t hear. I was walking down the line and it was like I was trying to decipher what he was saying. Before I knew it, he snapped the ball and I kind of saw him come out of my periphery running toward the rim, so I was trying to help my guy out. When I looked over there, he was already in shape, like a photo on a sports card, throwing the ball to me, so it was the right place, the right time.”

Mahomes started the game by faking a handoff to rookie running back Carson Steele. As he rolled to his right, Lions defensive lineman Josh Paschal broke free from a Kelce block and approached Mahomes. In a split second, Mahomes flipped the ball to Kelce, avoiding the pressure.

During practice last week, Mahomes made a similar throw to quarterback Isiah Pacheco that quickly went viral.

Lions cornerback Kindle Vildor, who was on the wrong end of a highlight-reel play in last season’s NFC championship game, didn’t even know about Mahomes’ viral throw. While covering Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice near the line of scrimmage, Vildor saw Mahomes whip the ball behind him. He wasn’t too surprised that Mahomes made such a move.

“Probably just him,” Vildor said. “I also saw Caleb Williams doing some wild stuff, so maybe it’s just the two of them.”

For die-hard basketball fans, Mahomes’ pass was the football equivalent of Jason Williams’ iconic (and often imitated) back elbow pass during the 2000 NBA Rookie-Sophomore All-Star Game. Williams dribbled down the court with Lamar Odom approaching, then threw the ball behind with his left hand, bouncing it off his right elbow in an attempt to pass to Raef LaFrentz.

“I saw (Mahomes) do it and I was like, ‘Come on, man,’” Vildor said. “He thinks he’s a keeper there. It was crazy, though.”