The Kansas City Chiefs looked to be having a blast with the entire NFL community watching in Week 5 versus the New Orleans Saints — the perfect example of that being Travis Kelce’s in-game lateral to veteran running back Samaje Perine.
Kelce has attempted and faked laterals before, so this wasn’t necessarily a shocking move despite its rarity around the league, but the future Hall of Fame tight end still managed to catch superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes II off-guard with the risky but confident play.
“I mean, I’m shaking my head because I told [Kelce] before the play, I said, ‘I’m going to throw it to you so we can get in field goal range.’ And he underhand shoveled it across the entire field,” Mahomes reacted after the game, teasing that “it’s like I’m talking to [my three-year-old daughter] Sterling.”
After drawing a bunch of laughs from media members in attendance, Mahomes added: “That’s Travis, man. He’s a special player and as long as he does it and it works, man, no one’s going to say anything.”
Chiefs HC Andy Reid Echoes Patrick Mahomes After Latest Travis Kelce Lateral
As Mahomes stated, Kelce is allowed to attempt plays like this because they work. The minute that a lateral pass is dropped or deflected for a turnover, however, head coach Andy Reid will likely put an end to it.
That was once again the sentiment from Reid after the victory.
“If he doesn’t do well with it, I tell him, ‘Don’t come back to the bench,’” the Chiefs head coach joked, regarding Kelce’s latest lateral attempt.
He also confirmed to reporters that Kelce practices the move every day at practice, so it is team approved.
“[Kelce] does a great job with the decision to [lateral] or not do it,” Reid noted. The veteran HC also described the backwards pitch as a “welcome to the crew” moment for Perine.
Andy Reid Says Chiefs Players ‘Don’t Flinch’ Despite Injuries
It felt like we were all watching highlight tapes on October 7 as Kelce and Mahomes looked in sync again, running back Kareem Hunt pounded the rock for first downs, wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster broke loose for big gainers and even tight end Jody Fortson caught a pass for a first down.
The memo to the rest of the NFL? The Chiefs aren’t going anywhere so long as Mahomes, Reid, Kelce and this Steve Spagnuolo led defense are in KC.
“These guys — and you get tired of me saying it but — they don’t flinch on all that stuff,” Reid said, regarding the key injuries on offense. “They just [send] the next guy up and he goes. And so, I’m proud of them for that.”
“There’s an attitude in the locker room [from] those guys that you’d ask to start with that group there,” the Chiefs HC went on. “And they just know that they trust the next guy is going to come in and do a good job. So, it’s more of a positive thinking than a negative thinking — where you try to find all the warts. They’re not doing that with these guys.”
Kansas City will take the next week off for their annual bye. When they return, they’ll be one of the only two undefeated teams in the NFL along with the Minnesota Vikings. Both will attempt to find their way to 6-0 in Week 7.
