With the shortest bit of preseason action under his belt, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is preparing for an unfamiliar role in the second preseason game — a backup.
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said before last week’s game against the Arizona Cardinals that Mahomes would play for a quarter, but those plans changed during the game. The Chiefs took over on a short field after a Cardinals fumble, and Mahomes completed his only pass of the game for a 1-yard touchdown — then headed to the bench for the rest of the contest.
Mahomes will be playing even less this week, leading him to lead the scout team at practice while backup Gardner Minshew prepares to start.
Patrick Mahomes Embraced New Scout Team Role
As Pete Sweeney of Arrowhead Pride reported, both Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce were working with the scout team at practice on Wednesday in preparation of this week’s preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks.
Free from the pressure of running with the first team, Mahomes said he loved the chance to try some new things on offense.
”It’s fun,” Mahomes said. “You get to try stuff even more than you would try at a regular training camp practice, and so [I] worked on my fakes and stuff like that — trying to get a defense to bite on fakes and stuff. [I] tried to throw it into tighter windows. Sometimes those things are circled but you still want to try to fit it in there and get the completions. It’s a different type of competitive thing that you go through, and you’re trying to beat the defense whenever they are set up to succeed.”
Reid already hinted that Mahomes and Kelce would stay on the bench in this week’s game, with the team instead focusing on setting the bottom of the roster.
“There’s a chance I sit a couple of the starters or at least be short with them,” Reid said. “We want to make sure we get a good look at these young guys, so we’ll just see how it all rolls going forward.”
The Chiefs are looking to avenge their Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, with a chance to tie the NFL all-time record with four straight Super Bowl appearances.
Gardner Minshew Taking Backup Role Seriously
Though Mahomes has been a durable quarterback — not missing a game due to injury since 2019 — Minshew said he is taking his backup job seriously and preparing as if he were the starter. The
“For us, for me, it’s just getting out there and getting better with every rep, trying to learn, not make the same mistakes, and push myself in the ways that the coaches are asking me to push myself,” Minshew said.
Minshew has plenty of starting experience in the NFL. The 29-year-old is heading into his seventh NFL season and his fifth team, holding a 17-29 record as a starter. Minshew spent some time as a starter last season for the Las Vegas Raiders, throwing for 2,013 yards with nine touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
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