The Kansas City Chiefs have done it again. For the ninth consecutive NFL season, Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid are celebrating the division title, with the Chiefs clinching the AFC West championship with four weeks to go.
It took a hard-fought win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday night to achieve the feat, with kicker Matthew Wright giving the Chiefs the upper hand with a game-winning field goal in the final play of the game.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Reid had a special message for his players, giving Mahomes and company their deserved flowers: “I’m proud of the guys. … It’s not easy. That’s not an easy thing, every year is a little bit different on how we’ve gotten there.
“I’m proud of our guys. We’re just hanging in there. We have so many tight games, more so than some of these other years, and so the guys keep hanging in there and feeling like good things are going to happen and keep battling.”
Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs and head coach Andy Reid speak before a game against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium on January 07, 2024 in Inglewood, California.
Reid warns the Chiefs about upcoming games
With the win over the Chargers, the Chiefs improved to 12-1 in the 2024 NFL season, enough to secure the top spot in their division. But after praising his players, Reid also reminded his team that this isn’t over yet.
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“We’ve still got games left,” Reid said. “When I say this, we’re not just putting the tent up right here and calling it a day. We’ve got to keep playing and playing aggressively. Like I said, we’re playing some real good football teams that are trying to get themselves into the playoffs. So they’re going to be hungry and attacking. It’s a great achievement, but there’s more left.”
While it’s completely understandable that Reid wants to ensure his players remain locked in, his quarterback already understands that what really matters in Kansas City is to win another Super Bowl.
Mahomes echoes Reid’s message to keep on working for Super Bowl run
During his media availability after the game, Mahomes gave the AFC West title the importance it deserves, but echoed Reid’s sentiment that the job isn’t done yet:
“It’s our first goal every single year—to win the AFC West,” Mahomes said. This is a great division with a lot of rivalries where everybody’s playing each other tough. I mean, three teams are going to probably make the playoffs, so it speaks to the division that we play in.
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“To be able to win this division and gain another game in the playoff picture, it was an important game for us against a really good football team. We found a way to get a win, but now we got to keep building if we want to get to our ultimate goal.”
