OPENING STATEMENT: “Alright, thanks to the fans for their support, they stayed and had a great show by – our special teams put on there at the end. To that point, my hat goes off to Denver for the job that they did. I thought defensively, offensively they were strong and it ended up being one of those kinds of games back and forth. They arguably take it down for the winning kick and then Leo (Chenal) steps up and does what Leo does. Every week somewhere he makes a play, defensively, special teams, somewhere he steps up and makes a play and he did a great job with that. Other than that, I’m going to give credit to Nazeeh (Johnson) because Nazeeh never gets any credit – for leading the team in tackles, he did a nice job there. Offensively, (Travis) Kelce had a big day again with the eight receptions for 58 yards and then he tied, I believe, (PFHOF TE) Tony (Gonzalez) for most (receiving) touchdowns in team history. So, all good there. Lots of room to improve, we’ve got a good team that we’re going to play this next weekend here so we’ve got to get ourselves ready, learn from the mistakes today and move on. I’m proud of our guys for battling, I told you that during training camp that they’ve got big hearts and you got a chance to see that today. So, with that, time’s yours.”
Q: Was there a weakness in the Broncos field goal protection that you took advantage of?
REID: “I get to see that every day, we work that block and that last final shot there. We did, but it’s also something that we work on like crazy so – it normally doesn’t work quite like that but that one, we had a couple different guys. George (Karlaftis) was in there too I believe. I haven’t had a chance to look at the replay but it looked like we had a couple different guys in there.”
Q: What is special about Leo Chenal?
REID: “He’s (Leo Chenal) a great athlete, big strong kid, plays a hundred miles an hour, he does it in practice, he does it during games, plays anywhere and everywhere and never says anything. (He) comes from a family – he’s got like 40 brothers and sisters so he’s used to sharing so he doesn’t really care about who gets the credit, and doesn’t get the credit, he just goes.”
Q: What’s your message to the team in the locker room after a win of this fashion?
REID: “There’s not much (that) you can say, the game told the story and for it to end like that – I haven’t been around a lot of those walk-off blocks. I’m going to enjoy it but I’m also going to get to work (on) fixing the other things that we need to fix before we go to Buffalo but you enjoy every one of these the best you possibly can because it’s tough in this league. The parity in this league is ridiculous.”
Q: The field goal obviously took the lead late, but did you consider going for it on that fourth down?
REID: “No.”
Q: Did you consider moving Joe Thuney out to left tackle when you were struggling without Wanya Morris there?
REID: “No. No, I didn’t.”
PATRICK MAHOMES
Q: When you were watching the field goal attempt, what were you watching and how did you take it in?
MAHOMES: “I was – I think more than anything I was just sick that last drive because I missed that touchdown throw that would’ve given us the chance to make it where they (the Broncos) had to score a touchdown – put our defense in a bad situation. I thought our defense stepped up in that second half and did a great job. I was just happy. I was happy that we ended with that block and Leo (Chenal) got through there. It was just joy after that.”
Q: What is the mindset as that play is happening?
MAHOMES: “Yeah, I mean, I – you definitely are (worried) because it’s just a low percentage for a block, but if anyone’s going to do it – I mean (Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator Dave) Toub and his team’s going to have a designed rush or deigned way to getting a hand on it, so it was – obviously, you’re obviously worried because it’s out of your control but at the same time I trust my teammates that they’re going to go out there and make a play.”
Q: On Leo Chenal’s strength for his size.
MAHOMES: “He’s (Leo Chenal) extremely strong. He’s like the strength of a d-lineman but he plays the linebacker position. You don’t want to be that guy on the end when he’s working out. We call him John Cena. He’s a guy who gets after it and we’ve used him on offense because of the way he’s able to use his speed and athleticism with that power. He did it (blocked) in the Super Bowl and he did it again today.”
Q: Offensively, does it feel like a win?
MAHOMES: “Yeah, they all feel like wins. I’ve learned that any way you win is good in this league. Obviously, there’s stuff to learn from. I thought we did good things in good spots. I missed – I mean, if I made the touchdown throw to Trav (Travis Kelce) and I made the touchdown throw to (Xavier) Worthy, we’re probably in a different situation. (We) just have to execute in the red zone when you’re playing a good defense and if you make those two throws, we’re not relying on the block by Leo (Chenal).”
Q: What is special about the matchup against the Broncos?
MAHOMES: “They (the Broncos) play extremely hard, they’re well coached, they do a good job of mixing coverage and then they make you execute throughout the entire field. Like I just said, we had chances. You had that and you had the one down the sideline to Worthy that I threw out of bounds. There are chances but if you don’t hit them, the drives stall out because they continue to play hard. You have to execute and execute on those chances in order to beat a good football and we didn’t do that today and got lucky and found a way to get the win in the end anyways.”
Q: What needs to be done better to make sure that you guys keep winning?
MAHOMES: “It’s week-to-week in this league. I mean it’s – I just continue to work and get better throughout the entire season. We know it’s going to be a great challenge this next week – Buffalo’s playing great football. They’ve played great football for a while now and we understand what it takes to go into an environment like that and have to give it everything you have in order to get a win. We know they’ll be fiery and they’re going to be trying to beat us so we’re going to (have to) play better and execute at a higher level in order to win. I trust our guys are going to get back to work and have a full week of rest and play our best football going into Buffalo.”
Q: What does it say about Wanya Morris to fight through injury and keep playing?
MAHOMES: “He’s (Wanya Morris) a fighter, man. He’s someone that gets in there and he puts it all on the line and that’s what you want on the football team is someone that can fight through injury and play. I was proud of him. He got in there and he did his thing and that’s a good defensive line – a good defense. I thought he did a great job fighting through injury to play some good football.”
Q: Can you take us through the touchdown pass to Travis Kelce?
MAHOMES: “Yeah, I mean fourth-and-goal – (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid giving us a chance to get a touchdown. Trav (Travis Kelce) read it right. He kind of had a read-type option on that play and he got the DB (defensive back) to go outside. He (Broncos CB Ja’Quan McMillian) slips a little bit and then Trav just kind of curls it in there. I gave him the ball and that was kind of my first read – I had a couple other options there but when your first read’s open, man, you just fire it to him.”
Q: On the missed touchdown throws.
MAHOMES: “It’s a little bit of missed throws, little bit of me not seeing the coverage exactly the way I should. I thought on the one to Trav (Travis Kelce), the linebacker probably – which he probably should’ve got a little more depth. I threw it a little higher than I wanted to even though he didn’t get depth. If I can just fire it in there and get him a touchdown there – then, the one to (Xavier) Worthy, it was a scramble play. Then, I just left it high when I kind of was off balance – saw him open and threw it. I’ve made those throws before. It’s just about going back, executing and making them next week or whenever that is this season.”
Q: Is there any way to describe what was going through your mind at the end of the game?
MAHOMES: “It’s awesome, man. You live for these moments. When you grow up playing football, you live for the walk-off whatever it is. It’s special when you build (with) these guys for so long and you’ve built this chemistry with them and guys get to make that play. It’s something that I’m sure Leo (Chenal) will have for the rest of his life. I’m just glad that we all get to experience it together.”
LB LEO CHENAL
Q: Take us through that field goal block. What did you see and was it your hand that got a piece of it?
CHENAL: “It was right below my palm. It was a good push by everybody, and I got through. We’ve been talking about it for a while – winning one of those – and we did it in a big moment.”
Q: What are your feelings during and after that play?
CHENAL: “It’s complete shock. Not much I can say about it. Glory to Jesus Christ and everything because I was really praying for something to happen. That moment is so heavy, there’s a second on the clock and they’re going to kick the field goal. You feel the weight of the moment.”
Q: After you blocked the kick in the Super Bowl last year, did you feel like that was it and you were done with blocks for your career?
CHENAL: “That was definitely a big moment. I want to credit Mike Danna on (the one in the Super Bowl) – I’ll get the stat for it, it went through my hand, but he was the one who really stopped the ball. He’s not going to get credit with the stat, but a big credit to him. It’s never that mentality of I’m never going to get there again. When you have guys like J. Reid (Justin Reid) rushing like he does, Jack (Cochrane) and the big push by the big guys in the middle, George (Karlaftis) and what he does. Working on get-offs, it’s bound to happen. It’s been a long time coming.”
Q: How much does a play like that revolve around the unit operating in unison?
CHENAL: “It’s big. It’s a team effort. They have to respect (Justin Reid) J. Reid on the outside, they have to respect our guys rushing on the outside and in the middle. It’s not like they can just lean heavy to one guy. It’s a big credit. George (Karlaftis) is doing what he’s doing right beside me all the time, he’s getting pressure right there. Any time I get my hand near it, George is right there. He has a little bit bigger wingspan than me. It’s a big team effort.”
LB NICK BOLTON
Q: What did you think of Broncos QB Bo Nix’s performance?
BOLTON: “I think he did a good job playing within the system. He had a couple tough throws. I thought we could have done a better job mixing up our looks and make him think a little bit more pre-snap. Overall, I thought he played a pretty decent game today.”
Q: Can you walk us through your big sack?
BOLTON: “(Defensive Coordinator) Coach (Steve Spagnuolo) ‘Spags’ saw something throughout the week and waited for the right position to call it. It was something new we put in this week. The back went over to block (Justin Reid) J. Reid, and I was free, I just had to make the layup. I missed the last couple ones the last couple games, so it felt good to get that one.”
Q: What was your feeling once you saw the field goal was blocked?
BOLTON: “I was super proud of the guys. When you get down in that situation and they’re moving the ball on you a little bit, you kind of get down and play bad football and maybe let a touchdown go or something like that but then you have a chance to block that field goal. I think our guys were real close throughout the game. It was relentless effort on that last place and we got two guys free even though I think Leo (Chenal) was the one who got the block.”
Q: What did you think of the game Denver QB Bo Nix’s had and what challenge does it present that he is in the division now?
BOLTON: “I think he does a good job of taking what’s given to him. They make it easy for him with reads and pre-snap movement and getting to the line early. I think those things help him progress as the game goes on and he tries to get the feel for it. He can also use his legs – that’s something that’s going to be a challenge for us as we continue to play him next time. He can use his legs to extend the play and get out of the pocket, he has great ‘escapability’ and great feel for the game. He’s definitely going to be a challenge for us.”
