Patrick Mahomes knew he might not be able to stop on his bum ankle

In last Sunday’s 21-7 road victory over the Cleveland Browns, the Kansas City Chiefs’ superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered what was later described as a “mild high ankle sprain.” But on Tuesday — and in the two days after that — Mahomes was a full participant in the team’s practices.

Then, in the team’s first offensive drive during Saturday’s 27-19 home win over the Houston Texans, Mahomes gained 12 yards on a third-and-13 at the Texans’ 41-yard line — and then two plays later scrambled 15 yards for the game’s first touchdown.

“Once I got running,” Mahomes told reporters after the game, “I saw the end zone and just tried to get up in the air and get in the end zone. It wasn’t like, ‘setting the tone’ or anything like that. I [was] just trying to play football.”

Mahomes knew that he’d be able to run in a straight line — but if he’d suddenly needed to hit the brakes, that might have been a problem.

“It’s just the stopping and cutting [that] isn’t great yet,” he admitted, “so I just try to keep it on the run — [to] keep moving and make a play happen.”

It’s not the first time Mahomes has played through injuries that might keep another player on the sidelines — but as far as he’s concerned, it’s just part of his job.

“I ask a lot from the guys around me,” he explained, “so I feel like if I’m going to ask them to play through pain — if I’m going to ask them to play through little knicks and bruises and stuff like that — [then] I have to do it as well.”

Still, Mahomes understands he might not always be able to tough it out.

“I’m not going to put us in a position to be in a bad spot — or lose a football game,” he insisted, “but if I can feel like I can compete and win, I’m going to be out on that football field.”

Head coach Andy Reid continues to be amazed.

“He spoils the dog out of us there because he’s so tough — [both] mentally and physically,” he marveled. “You just get used to it. Most guys don’t come back from that like he did — but he set his mind to it, and then he jumped in that training room and stayed in there.”

Reid believes Mahomes has instilled the same determination in those around him.

“It sends a message to the whole team,” noted Reid. “Our guys are real good with that; our leaders are good in that way. They try to play through things like that.”

But Mahomes was hardly the only Kansas City player who attracted attention on Saturday. Wide receiver Hollywood Brown was finally able to make his Chiefs debut, collecting five catches for 45 yards on eight targets — the first of them a 12-yard gain to convert a fourth-and-1 after Mahomes’ first scramble. Perhaps more importantly, his very presence helped create opportunities for wide receivers Xavier Worthy and DeAndre Hopkins.

“I thought those guys did a great job,” said Mahomes. “I think they had won even more than I even threw them the football. But you saw: we moved the ball well today — and we have to continue to do that. Some of the drives stalled out quickly, but once we kind of got the drives going, it seemed like we could move down the field.”

The head coach believes that Brown — and the rest of his receivers — strike the right balance between wanting to make plays and understanding it’s a team sport.

“The great thing about all those guys,” observed Reid, “is that they all want to play — [but] we just have one ball. I try to explain that to them, and they all [still] want to go make the play. [Brown is] like that: he loves playing.”

All told, the head coach loved what he saw in Saturday’s game.

“I thought this was our best game offensively, defensively and special teams-wise,” he said. “We’ve got to keep going, though. We’ve got a lot of room to improve [and] we have to make sure we keep doing that. We’ve got a short turnaround to get that done in — against a good football team.”

The team will be on the road to play the (10-4) Pittsburgh Steelers on Christmas Day. Kickoff will be at noon (Arrowhead Time) this Wednesday on Netflix and KCTV/5.

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