Following the Kansas City Chiefs’ thrilling victory over the Atlanta Falcons in Week 3 of the 2024 NFL season, head coach Andy Reid delivered a strong message to quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the team’s offensive line.

After defeating the Atlanta Falcons in yet another fiercely contested game during the 2024 NFL season, the Kansas City Chiefs are now 3-0. Although the record is excellent, Andy Reid is aware that Patrick Mahomes and company still require improvement.

In actuality, Sunday’s defense came through for the win after the offense gave the Falcons possession late in the fourth quarter. The Chiefs were able to maintain their advantage when Nick Bolton stopped Bijan Robinson on a fourth-down play, but Reid is determined not to find himself in that scenario ever again.

“We’ve got a ton of things to work on,” Reid said in his postgame press conference, with a clear warning for Mahomes and the Chiefs’ offense. “We need to do a better job offensively on that last drive and not put the defense in that position. But we stepped up on the defensive side and did a nice job of holding them out of there.”

Reid and Mahomes are too familiar with one another to be concerned that their remarks will cause them to argue. In fact, when things don’t go as planned, the Chiefs quarterback is the first to be critical of himself. His candid admission following the Falcons game was therefore not shocking in the slightest.

Mahomes lets Reid know he knows he must improve for the Chiefs

“We haven’t played well, in really, all three games,” Mahomes said. “We’ve been able to win, and that speaks to the character of the team, the grit, and how we’ve been in these situations before. But I’ll speak especially offensively for me, I feel like I haven’t played very well. That’s not a stats thing. I just feel like I’m missing opportunities whenever they’re out there and not throwing the ball in the exact spot I want it to be at. So, that’s about me getting back to my fundamentals, putting our guys in the right position, and then we got to execute at a higher level offensively. If teams are going to make us drive the field we have to prove that we’re able to do that.”

Against the Falcons, Mahomes completed 26 of his 39 passes for 217 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. Although these results were sufficient for the Chiefs to win, they fall short of the two-time NFL MVP’s lofty expectations.

The Texas Tech product is the first to acknowledge that improvements are necessary and doesn’t require external validation. Furthermore, Mahomes is aware of the precise areas in which he has to get better.

“I think just footwork stuff,” Mahomes said. “I’ve got to get my base right. I think I’m trusting my arm too much on some of those throws. Even the first throw of the game, I just kind of flicked it – kind of off-balance – and don’t hit Rashee (Rice) going down the seam there. I’ve got to get back to my fundamentals. That’s stuff that I go through sometimes [but] not usually early in the season like this. Luckily for me, I’m not playing my best football and we’re still getting wins. I’ve got to get better to make the offense better.”