[Arthur Smith] Here we go.
[radio blips]
Hey, Desmond, you got 3rd down, man. Take control of the situation.
-Cadillac X and Z Rakes on 1. -[analyst 1] Down in the A.
A quarterback change has led to, uh, just a little controversy.
Yeah, strange couple days in Atlanta for the Falcons. They had a bye last week.
They bring in Marcus Mariota and say,
"We're benching you. We're starting rookie Desmond Ridder."
That's five! Take the first, nothing wrong with that.
We got in a hole to start the season, we climbed out of it.
We're right in the mix, and, uh…
You know, unfortunately, we went through a rough patch.
-We needed to get out of that rut. -Set, hut!
[Smith] Felt that that change was needed. Those aren't easy.
[analyst 2] The day Desmond Ridder was named the starter,
head coach Arthur Smith also said Marcus Mariota is gone.
[Smith] Marcus, he got an old chronic knee he wants to get evaluated.
So he's… he's not here right now.
We'll see how the rest of the week goes, but I anticipate him going to IR.
[reporter] It's Marcus who you're anticipating going on IR?
I'd anticipate that, yeah.
That had nothing to do with the move here, Josh.
But there's something chronic, nothing that's been an issue this season.
[reporter] Do you expect Marcus back this season?
[Smith] I can't answer that right now.
[tense music rises and fades out]
[interviewer] And why did you decide to have the surgery?
[chuckles]
Well, so, ultimately, um…
It's a long story, really. Um…
-So… -[Siri] I'm not sure I understand.
-[laughter] -Thanks, Siri.
Um…
So, during the bye week, um…
I… my daughter was born, Makaia, um…
When she was born, Art brought me in, um…
the next, the following day, and was talking about the future.
Kind of what he wanted to do. And…
Um, you know, they told me they were gonna play Des for the last four games, um…
You know, initially he'd said, like, "At this point in time of the year, um…
you know, the playoffs are a long shot. And we kinda wanna see what Des can do."
[interviewer 2] When you had your conversation with him,
did he discuss with you, "I think I'm gonna go get a surgery?" Or…
When he and I had that conversation, that's not what we talked about.
You know, those are private conversations. But it was more about the…
Where we were as a team, and as a player, and what the future might hold.
[analyst] As Arthur Smith benches Mariota,
end of the season, for rookie Desmond Ridder,
Mariota took this news,
and instead of being ready to go,
in case Ridder goes down,
he's just gone.
I just can't believe this.
[Marcus] I don't know why it had to be that narrative.
You know, I gave everything I had to this team.
I thought I was making a good decision for everybody.
Your meniscus goes kind of… around your knee.
And mine basically had torn. It was, like, flapped out.
Ultimately, we decided that… getting my knee fixed was in the best interest.
I came home, got my knee fixed, and I've been in Vegas.
[Smith] I love Marcus. Thankful that I got to spend more time with him.
People look at them, and they think they're robots.
They wear a helmet, that they're these modern-day gladiators.
But there's life outside this building. He gave us everything he had.
-[baby cooing] -[Marcus] Oi. I got you, girl.
-[dog snuffling] -[Marcus] Huh, little one? You good?
So, this is Makaia.
She's named Makaia Kai Mariota.
And it means, uh, "God's gift."
[chuckling] She's quite the traveler already. Um…
You know, she was born in Atlanta, um…
And we ended up bringing her here in Vegas.
I have a lot of friends and family that live here.
So, it kinda just fit well for us.
And, yeah. She's our little angel, our little love of our life.
And, brings a lot of perspective. And…
Um, just very thankful for her.
[gentle music playing]
[Kiyomi] Before we had her, I'm like,
"I'm not expecting you to, like, be around. Don't feel guilty, 'cause…"
Because I'm breastfeeding, there's not a ton that he can do,
other than, like, change diapers and stuff.
But I do think he can just hold her and spend time with her.
This bonding time, it's special.
'Cause it's time that he would've maybe not have got as much of
if he were playing right now, so…
I mean, blessing in disguise.
[Jason Kelce] Introducing the six-foot-two quarterback
out of Whitehouse High School,
our guest is a four-time Pro-Bowler,
NFL MVP, Super Bowl champion, the guy Travis caddies for on occasion.
[Travis] What?
While he's running and gunning, Travis is a-flanking.
We welcome number 15,
Patrick Mahomes, everyone!
-Wow. That was impressive. -Let's fucking go!
-That was impressive. -Way to bring the juice, baby.
I like to say six-two and one-fourth.
-You know, the hair adds a bit. -Ooh. Get that one-fourth.
-All right, now. -Just saying.
[Jason] Welcome to the #1 sports podcast in the world, Pat.
It's an honor to have you here.
So you watch a lot of film on the defensive guys.
You watch any other quarterbacks to try and draw inspiration?
Yeah, I've always watched Aaron.
I've watched a lot of Aaron.
[commentator] Aaron Rodgers is playing chess, not checkers.
[Patrick] I felt when I grew up, that was the kinda guy I could model my game after.
I watch Stafford a lot. The sidearms and stuff like that.
I watched Tom when I was in college a ton.
'Cause I needed to get better from within the pocket.
Like, Tom isn't the fastest guy.
-[Brady] White, hut! -But as far as mobility inside the pocket…
-Obviously, one of the best of all time. -[Jason] Great pocket presence.
Are there young quarterbacks that you feel like it means a bit more?
Like, when you're playing against each other?
Obviously now, I mean, Joe Burrow, man.
He's beat me twice. I haven't beat him at all.
So, he's one of the only guys that I think I haven't beat.
He's come back both games and beat me.
Ton of respect him and that team. They fight to the end.
They beat us in the AFC championship game, man.
[crowd cheering]
Good game, 15.
9, way to play, man. Good luck.
-We'll win it all. -Yeah.
-[Travis] All the respect for those guys. -Big game for us when we play in weeks.
That's an Ohio football guy, man. [sighs]
-Was it home or away against them? -We are away. We are on the…
-[Travis] Back in the 'Nati. -[Patrick] Back in the 'Nati.
[tense music playing]
[analyst] This has been a house of horrors and a team of horrors for Patrick Mahomes.
He's going against a Bengals team
that beat him in the regular season, and beat him again in the playoffs.
You make it three, and we've got an actual storyline we can go into,
saying Joe Burrow owns Patrick Mahomes.
Mahomes doesn't lose in November-December. We've done that stat a million times.
But he also doesn't necessarily beat this guy Burrow.
So, fascinated to see how this one plays out.
[spectator] Hey, yo, Pat! You're 0 and 2, baby! You're 0 and 2!
[indistinct chatter and shouting]
-[crowd] Who dat?! -All right, now.
[commentator] Joe Burrow could be the 1st QB to ever defeat Patrick Mahomes
three consecutive meetings.
-Be who we are is all we gotta do. -Exactly.
Yes, sir.
Ready, set, hut!
[commentator] Burrow in the pocket, surveying the field, over the middle,
pass is caught at the Kansas City 20-yard line for 14 yards.
Snap to Burrow, quarterback draw.
Goes up the middle, and… Yeah, he's in there.
And Cincinnati gets a 75-yard touchdown drive to start the game.
[crowd cheering]
[players grunting]
-[commentator] Mahomes in trouble. -[players grunting]
Mahomes didn't have a chance.
[Patrick] Hey, keep pushing.
Hey, look, keep working. Let's go. Let's go. Let's go. We keep working.
[commentator] Burrow looks right slant, it is caught inside the five.
Tee Higgins, breaking a tackle and diving for a Cincinnati touchdown.
And the Bengals have two touchdowns on two drives.
-Let's go! -Right now, Cincinnati owning this game.
[Patrick] They had all the momentum,
so I knew we needed to get something going.
Probably the most important job at QB is to make sure you're protected.
And when you need to be hot, which is throw the ball
'cause someone's free rushing.
So this is the picture.
Then, boom, 21 is there, 24 is there.
That's why I miked 24 and blacked it.
Trying to make sure y'all know why I'm doing that.
Most times it'll be five-down pressure,
but if he pops out, be ready for the nickel.
And then 24 will get cleaned up by the back.
-Yeah. -[kid in crowd] Mahomes!
-I didn't even get to you. -Yeah, I know. But…
Even then, we can run Dangle out of this same thing
because he's not pressing it. He's long.
-He's pre-releasing. -Soon as I went vert, he shot over there.
I'll go… I'll let the coaches know on that one. For sure. That's easy too.
It was about how we were gonna execute this next drive.
How we're gonna get a touchdown and put some pressure on them.
Hey, mike 55 black! Mike 55 black!
-Set. -[dramatic music plays]
[commentator 1] All-out pressure.
Third and seven.
He's gonna go back to Valdes-Scantling.
This time he has it.
[commentator 2] No one does it like Mahomes, drifting back and throwing.
[analyst] Right now, Patrick Mahomes is the front-runner in the MVP.
[Patrick] Don't bring that shit on me! I'm ready for that shit!
[commentator] Chiefs have third down and four.
Handoff goes to Pacheco, up the middle, inside the five!
Pacheco, touchdown!
[Patrick] Get up in there! Get up in there!
Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey!
That's attitude! I see you, 6-5!
Let's get it!
We were able to get momentum back,
we were able to get that lead against a really good defense.
Same time, I knew it was gonna take more points.
We need points, points, points, every drive.
[commentator] 17-17, tied,
at 3:59 to go in the third quarter.
[shouting]
The Chiefs will have 4th and goal to go at the three.
And the Chiefs are gonna go for it.
Black! Black! Black!
Let's go!
Set!
[commentator] Snap to Mahomes, looking right.
Now pumping, he'll run it, up the middle!
He dives! And the ball's out!
They're gonna give him a touchdown!
[Patrick] Touchdown! Touchdown!
I get in that bitch! I get in that bitch!
Let's go! Let's go!
[commentator 2] He did Michael Jordan up on top with the ball stretched out.
The Michael Jordan of the sport, maybe, just got over two guys.
-You all right? -Yes, sir. I'm good.
-All right? -I'm good, dawg.
[commentator] They trailed by 11. They now lead by seven.
[player] Michael Jordan'd his ass.
-[man] Jordan! -[kid] Jordan!
[Nagy] You made a good decision and you sacrificed it. Right?
-Touchdown. -That's it. That's all that matters.
Way to go.
[commentator] Chiefs lead, 24-20. First down and goal to go, Cincinnati.
-Our defense gotta get a stop… -Yeah. We gotta score another.
[commentator] Quick snap. There's Burrow. Setting his feet… across the middle.
Caught at the five. And sprinting into the end zone. Touchdown.
And the Bengals have regained the lead at 27 to 24.
With ten unanswered points.
We were down by three late in the game. We had the football.
And we knew if we convert on that 3rd down that we could go down and take the lead.
[commentator] 4:22 to go in the game.
They have third and three here.
Set.
Mahomes trying to buy some time, scrambling back to his left.
And he's hit from behind and sacked at the 35.
He did not see the rusher coming in behind him.
[Patrick] Got shoelace tackled. If I don't I probably hit JuJu for a huge completion.
I was trying to get up to get it to him.
Eyes there on Kelce, I was gonna go back to there, and I fucking just…
[commentator] And the Bengals keep a three-point lead.
Minute-59 to go in the game. Third down, 11, for the Bengals.
Ball is at the Kansas City 28.
-Now they have to actually get a 1st down. -They gotta run it here.
[Patrick] Come on, defense. Come on.
[commentator] They're gonna throw it. Burrow to throw.
He's hit as he throws, and the pass will be caught!
And it'll be a first down, and that'll do it.
[crowd cheering]
This… was Joe Cool.
[Patrick] They were able to get the ball and not give it back.
We didn't execute at the right times, and they were able to beat us.
[commentator] And the Chiefs are gonna lose to the Bengals
for a third consecutive time.
-You're a nightmare. -Appreciate it.
Good luck this year. Hope to catch y'all in the playoffs.
-You know you will. -Yes, sir. Good game.
Yes, sir. Hope we catch y'all in the playoffs, dawg.
Hey, go do your thing, man. Good luck. Stay healthy.
-We'll see you. -For sure, dawg.
[Patrick] He got my number the first two times.
I was pretty upset he was able to get me the third time as well.
[commentator] Go back to a year ago, and the Chiefs are 20-2
against everybody in the league other than Cincinnati. They're 0-3.
[commentator 2] This rivalry is growing. I never thought I'd say it's one-sided.
[Patrick] Fuck!
Fuck!
[Kirk] Turner, I've got your backpack. Do you need a sweatshirt, or you okay?
-[Turner] I'm good. -[Kirk] All right.
We're gonna get in the white car. Okay, Turner?
If we're on a Sunday-to-Sunday schedule, unlike most starting quarterbacks,
I choose to take Tuesday entirely off.
About eight years ago, I made the decision
that I'm gonna truly rest for 24 hours a week during the season.
I think at first it threw the coaches off a little bit.
"Our starting quarterback's not gonna be in the building all day on Tuesday?"
"We're not even gonna see him?"
But it's just something that I felt was important.
On Tuesday, I'll do anything that isn't football.
Okay.
There you go.
-Thank you. Bye. -You're welcome.
-[Julie] Say, "Have a good morning." -Have a good morning.
[Julie] Our boys go to preschool for a few hours.
So, during that time, Kirk and I get our time together.
We'll go for a walk with the dog.
Good boy.
He's the best dog ever.
My love language happens to be quality time.
So, Tuesday…
I don't know how I could do this life without Tuesday.
[chuckles] Seriously, during football season,
because that is where I get quality time with Kirk.
I can deal with every other crazy day.
Not talking to him or not seeing him,
or sharing him with a million people.
But I know Tuesday is coming.
That day… just really resets our entire family.
[Julie laughing]
In addition to spending time with me and our boys when he's at home,
he also takes the time to sift through some fan mail that he gets.
[pleasant music playing]
This is somebody who has been through 20 months
of chemotherapy treatment
every three weeks.
Seventeen-year-old here, Tobin, from Minnesota,
two-time survivor of brain cancer.
Someone actually in prison, who's writing… from prison.
So it's something that, you know, just… can be worth reading,
and hearing their perspective.
Nothing worse than when you sign your autograph, and it smears.
[chuckles] So… try to dry it off.
You know, people who cheer us on, pray for us, are asking for something,
I think it's worth it to try to, you know, brighten their day with an autograph,
or a note back.
"Alexander, thanks for your kind note. We're lucky to have loyal fans like you."
"Don't hold it against your teacher that she's a Packers fan. We all have faults."
Just an acknowledgement that their support of us,
and their request is not falling on deaf ears.
Tuesday is a day I look forward to, to recharge the batteries,
and to sort of center myself again, to get ready for the next week.
[music fades out]
I could be in here for like eight hours, and just get a coffee,
get a chair, and just keep reading. It's so relaxing.
-Excuse me, do you work here? -[woman] Yeah.
Would I be able to ask you if you have a couple books in stock?
[woman] What are you looking for?
[Kirk] I'm looking for that Killing series by Martin Dugard.
That's a cool book too.
-Thank you. -Also, buy 1, get 1 half off.
-If you choose one from another table. -My lucky day.
-From any of these tables. -Any with "Buy 1, Get 1 half off."
All right.
Good to see Dwyane Wade wrote a book.
I used to read books like this as a high school athlete,
wondering what it was like to be at this level of Dwyane Wade, right?
And now you read it, still wondering.
But more wondering how… he went about his business different from me.
With his bodywork, with his training,
with his, um… family, his rhythms, or the same.
And, so it's a different perspective now when you read it, seeing…
You see it less like a fan,
and more like a businessman, or just a human being as to how to handle it.
This should be a fun read.
["The Man" by The Killers playing]
♪ I know the score ♪
Down, one, set!
♪ Like the back of my hand ♪
[analyst 1] Kirk Cousins, to me, has now elevated himself
to be in the MVP conversation.
[analyst 2] In the 4th quarter of a game, nobody better than Kirk Cousins right now.
The Minnesota Vikings,
they've been lending him their diamond chains after the team wins.
♪ I'm the man ♪
♪ Come 'round ♪
Maybe this is how we step it up,
if we get… next road win we get.
♪ I got gas in the tank I got money in the bank ♪
Can I get a photo right here?
♪ I got news for you, baby You're looking at the man ♪
That's pretty good, Viktor. I like that.
Get worked up, baby! That Kirk-alert!
-[Kirk] You like that! -Where's my Kirk-alert?
[Irvin] You like that! You like that!
♪ You're looking at the man ♪
-♪ I got skin in the game ♪ -[kid] Whoo!
-[Kirk] Hey, Lincoln, can you hear me? -[Lincoln] Mm-hmm.
What inspired the decision to go shirtless and wear chains?
Uh, the TikTok video.
You like that?
-[players chanting] Go! Go! Go! -[laughter]
♪ Who's the man? Who's the man? ♪
♪ I'm the man, I'm the man ♪
♪ Who's the man with the plan? ♪
♪ I'm the man ♪
[Irvin] This dude here, he feels real comfortable.
And, man, it's showing up on the football field.
Found a guy, no shirt all game with chains on.
-Yeah, where is he? -He's over here on the left.
-Wanna go…? -Let's go.
[fan screaming]
Yeah! [laughs]
-I love you, bro! -That's impressive.
Yeah! I love you!
Let's go. I love it.
-Yeah! -I love it, man.
Hey, appreciate you, man.
Hopefully that hat can keep you warm, 'cause the shirt isn't.
-Let's go. -Thank you.
[Eisen] We thought, at this point in time,
your choice of Kirk Cousins as an MVP
would be past-date.
Yeah, if only there wasn't Josh Allen,
or Jalen Hurts, or Patrick Mahomes doing what they're doing.
-Those three letters might actually land. -Right. Right.
-But he's up there with those guys. -There's no question.
And that means, right there…
-That's that Kirk-alert button. -[Kirk] You like that? You like that!
You see I bought that thing right there.
I love that guy right there, baby.
-You like that? -I like that, Kirk!
You like that? I like that!
[commentator] Welcome to Empower Field at Mile High,
on an absolutely gorgeous December 11th,
as we are getting set for this AFC West matchup
between the Denver Broncos and the Kansas City Chiefs.
[analyst 1] Patrick, Mahomes, and KC, they continue to dominate the division.
[analyst 2] They're the #2 seed in the AFC right now.
Patrick Mahomes is tracking towards his second MVP award.
But he wants to rally his team. He feels it's his responsibility
to pick them up after the loss to Cincinnati last week.
[Patrick] Losing to Buffalo and Cincinnati,
two of the top teams in the AFC,
we knew we had hurt our chances, as far as tiebreakers and records go.
But we knew if we win out, that we would have a chance to get that #1 seed still.
[action music playing]
The benefits of getting the #1 seed are, you basically get a bye to rest your body,
and prepare to win two games to get to the Super Bowl.
And we, believe, have the best home-field advantage.
Having to make teams come to play in Arrowhead,
which usually is cold that time of year, um,
and windy, and a little different than a lot of stadiums you play in.
And, so, we feel like that's a huge advantage for us.
[commentator] The Chiefs are leading 27 to nothing.
Snap to Mahomes, again pressured.
Dumps it over the middle, and the pass is going to be intercepted.
Second down and seven, Chiefs, over the middle, pass will be intercepted.
Patrick Mahomes now will have interceptions on back-to-back drives.
I lost him when he jumped out like that. The first one…
I saw him bounce out, and I was thinkin'…
Then he rolled, and I fucking just followed him.
Fuckin'… Fuck.
[commentator] The Broncos are within one score.
Mahomes, looking…
Intercepted!
Josey Jewell, his second of the day!
That is number three for Patrick Mahomes.
It's all right. We'll get back. We'll get right back.
[Patrick] In fucking field-goal range, Patrick.
I'm letting us down, man.
I'm letting us down, baby. I gotta go win this game, man.
The competitor in me,
at certain points of the game, knows I gotta lay it on the line.
I gotta go out there and do whatever I can to win this football game.
-Set! -["All I Do Is Win" playing]
[commentator] Third and goal for K.C.
Mahomes.
Surveying…
Spins… keeps it alive!
Touchdown!
Fucking go! Fucking go!
Let's fucking go!
[commentator] The Chiefs keep pace with the Buffalo Bills in the AFC
and move to 10 and 3.
[Patrick] Bruh… What am I doing?
I play too good to throw those dumb-ass interceptions, dude.
[analyst] Patrick Mahomes, appears to be an MVP-type campaign,
leads the NFL in touchdown passes and passing yards.
Set.
[commentator] Third down, goal to go for the Chiefs. Spread out action right side…
Touchdown, Kansas City!
[commentator 2] Pinpoint throw by Patrick Mahomes.
[commentator] And the Chiefs have now won nine of 11,
and clinch the division for a seventh consecutive time.
I know my head's too big for the hat, how he had it.
I got all this hair.
Hey, let's go. Red blitz. Red blitz. Red blitz.
Go blue-80. Set, hut!
[commentator] Here comes an inside blitz. Mahomes reads it, moves to his right.
Keeps the ball in his right hand, trying to stay alive. Dives for the right pylon.
Touchdown!
-Kansas City! -I touched that bitch!
Let's go!
She's playing with him.
It's okay, buddy.
Hi!
Go blue-80. Set, hut!
[commentator] Mahomes will throw it. Over the middle, wide open, Blake Bell,
reaching out, rolling into the end zone.
And they're gonna give it to him. Touchdown!
Let's go, Daddy!
[commentator] And Patrick Mahomes, now over 5000 yards passing on the season.
[analyst] Chiefs beating the Raiders this weekend would secure a bye
and home-field advantage for Kansas City.
Nineteen! Nineteen! Nineteen! K.T.!
["All I Do Is Win" ends]
So what we're gonna do is we're going to fake it to you.
But you gotta stay, like, flat almost.
Jet's gonna end up pitching it back to Pat.
But when you fake it, you're just gonna leak out.
And it's gonna… The line's gonna go with it.
-And it's gonna be a screen. -Globetrotter screen back to you.
The Snow Globe play was a play Coach Reid had made up.
I'll catch it, look down the field for a second,
I'll throw it back to you. Gonna be like the 15-yard line. Just go. Easy touchdown.
And I was like, "You did this. What if we tried this off of it?"
-What's the play name? What is it? -It all makes such great sense.
Arctic Circle of Death.
To Snow Globe Trotter Screen Left.
Snow Globe Trotter… Yeah.
It's winter. So that's why we did the circle…
You can shake up the snow globe.
[Patrick] Yeah.
So it's Arctic Circle of Death
to Snow Globe Screen Left.
Like Globetrotter, but Snow Globe.
That shit's gonna… Hoo-hoo!
[Andy Reid] Snow Globe was a pretty good one. That was an oddity.
Where somebody might go, "What are we doing?" These guys go,
"Well, Pat likes it. Let's go, man. Let's roll with it."
When I say, "Arctic Circle of Death," everybody's gonna be like, "I got it."
Y'all know off the personnel, it's Reindeer personnel, baby.
[Patrick chuckles]
That's the only way we can get them all in a game.
Reindeer personnel.
Who's Rudolph?
-Am I Rudolph? -No.
[Patrick] That shit's nice, bruh.
[pensive music playing]
[commentator] We begin the final weekend of the regular season this afternoon.
It's time for the Chiefs and the Raiders.
The one thing we know today,
if the Kansas City Chiefs win, they're the number one seed in the AFC.
It always comes down to one or two games, I think,
that usually gets the #1 and the #2 seed.
Having that bye is like winning a playoff game
because you don't have to play in that wild-card round.
-All day, 8-7? -[Travis] Yeah, baby!
Yeah, baby.
[Patrick] You weren't here when they had that in Oakland. It was cool.
-[man] Really? -They lit an actual flame.
Only field I played on, and my dad played on.
-That's pretty sweet. -Yeah.
Hey, mike 20-white!
Mike 20-white! Alert! Alert!
[commentator] They lead 14 to 3, but in the shadows of their own end zone.
Set.
Snap to the belt of Mahomes. Here comes pressure.
-The flag is thrown. -Shit. Thank you!
A late hit in the end zone on Mahomes.
Bro, you know that shit's cheap!
Bro. Come on, bruh.
Maxx, bruh.
Maxx, you can't do that shit, bro. You punched me in the back of the head.
-I did? -I let a lot of shit go.
But you can't do that shit.
[commentator 2] I think they got him for the left arm getting up on Patrick's head.
-I got you. -Watch. I swear to God, bro.
I'm reaching for the ball.
I didn't mean to.
[commentator 2] And a time-out taken, the Chiefs facing a second and three.
-Hey. -[coaches] Reindeer!
Reindeer.
[commentator] See what the Chiefs do here.
[Patrick] Don't go downfield.
Huddle. Huddle. Huddle. Huddle.
Here we go. Here we go. Snow Globe Screen Left.
[commentator] Look at this. What are they doing?
Go!
[commentator 2] Chiefs are dancing in a circle in the huddle.
And now they race forward.
McKinnon in front of Patrick Mahomes, takes the snap,
they run the option to the right, Mahomes throws to the left.
Toney has a grab.
Breaks out of a tackle at the ten, the five.
Touchdown, Kansas City.
There is a flag there, which is gonna probably bring this back.
[Patrick] What?
A what?
[official] Holding. Offense, number 52.
[Patrick] It ended up getting called back on a holding call at the goal line.
But we were able to kind of do that… Arctic Circle. We confused the defense.
Then we're throwing a screen pass.
That's a very simple play that we dressed up really crazy.
Here we go.
[commentator 2] The huddle out of the time-out was in a circle.
Go!
Dancing around like they were doing something at a wedding.
[commentator 1] And when they finally broke the huddle,
McKinnon ended up being the quarterback.
[commentator 2] I've never seen that before in my life.
[analyst 1] The creativity in this offense,
the possibilities are endless.
[analyst 2] I dunno where they get that. I feel like this is like the Batman movie.
"Where does he get all these wonderful formations?"
We… I've been… I drew that play up for ten weeks, bro.
And we got fuckin'…
Right back on it.
[commentator] So the ball is back at the 11. It's second down and five.
Go white-80. Set, hut!
Under center is Mahomes,
they come on a jet sweep to Toney, at the ten on the angle,
breaks a tackle inside the five.
Touchdown!
Hey, don't fucking let up. It's a mindset. Dominate.
[epic music playing]
[commentator] Mahomes looks that way. Now moves to his left.
Holds the ball, holds it. Now he's gonna shovel it late.
He's got McKinnon. Touchdown!
And the Kansas City Chiefs
are gonna go to 14-3 on the regular season.
Hey, hell of a year, dawg. Much respect. Go do your thing
-You're the best. -Enjoy an offseason, buddy. Yes, sir.
[commentator] The Chiefs are the #1 seed for the AFC going in.
[commentator 2] They get a bye. That's significant.
[commentator 1] A whole extra game they don't have to play.
[crowd chanting] MVP! MVP!
MVP! MVP!
MVP! MVP! MVP!
[Patrick] Hey, hey, hey! Enjoy it.
Enjoy the plane ride home.
We come in this next week, get better.
Have the final goal in mind.
-Like Trav said, three more. -Three more.
That starts with one. Now y'all can turn up. Let's go.
-Chiefs on three. 1-2-3… -Chiefs!
[analyst 1] This is headline-worthy stuff in case you missed it.
The Minnesota Vikings are sitting at 10-3.
Nine of those ten wins have been by eight points or less.
[analyst 2] It's not enough to say this is a special season. We know that.
This is starting to feel like a team-of-destiny season.
I don't care the score, I don't care the game.
These Vikings always have a chance. It's pretty cool.
C.D. says I can do it. And C.D. has a nice chain that I wore too.
Very nice chain. Very nice.
Very nice chain. Top-notch.
-Top of the line. -He can wear it at the presser.
I need you to go to the haircut place, and trim this up right here.
-I'm going today. -It's killing me.
-I'm going today. -Killing me.
All right. Down, set, hut.
Yeah.
I like that. I like that.
Ready, set, hut!
[players grunting]
[Kirk] Yeah. All day. All day.
-All day. -[air horn sounds]
It's gonna be hard to turn that down.
So I should be aggressive to it.
[Kevin] All right, strong left slot. Do you know the Navy?
[Kirk] I'm familiar. Yep.
-Strong left slot, H-Navy slant. -[Kirk] Ten, strong left slot.
Down, one, set.
[grunting softly]
Good route. Really good route. Love that.
♪ Anchors aweigh, my boys ♪
♪ Anchors aweigh ♪
♪ Farewell to college joys ♪
♪ We sail at break of day ♪
You wanna make sure that, okay, this is a healthy level of enjoyment.
But not to a level where people or myself are losing focus.
-Yeah. -That make sense?
Well, I think it speaks to the trust mindset as well.
That there seems to be kind of this growing maturity.
We're getting in a good rhythm now here
of meeting adversity head-on.
-[Kirk] Yeah. -And I think you're modeling that.
Yeah, I would say there is maybe some level of just belief.
Yeah.
That we can come back, or we can make the play that needs to be made.
Offense, defense, special teams.
[tense music playing]
That trust mindset is important. I don't know that I've always had that.
[Dr. Mack chuckles] Yeah.
[commentator] Right on. Here we go.
Minnesota Vikings are in search of victory number 11.
Minnesota can clinch the division with a victory today.
-Let's ride. Love you. -Love you too, man.
Just let it all out, man. Just go play free. Have fun.
[Kirk] Let's do it.
There was urgency going into the home game against the Colts
to win this game, shut the door, win the division.
So we knew what was at stake.
[commentator] Oh, the punt's blocked!
And it's picked up by a member of the Colts,
and it's a touchdown for Indy.
Down, set, hut!
[commentator] First down, handoff, Dalvin. He's able to scoot up the middle.
And now Dalvin fumbled, and the Colts have the ball.
Matt Ryan swings it out right.
And it's a touchdown for the Colts, 17-0.
Are you kidding me?
[Kirk] I remember the, I call, the "You Like That" game,
against Tampa in 2015, had a similar feeling to it.
Ready… Ready, set, hut!
Everything that could go wrong did go wrong.
-That's a sack! -[Kirk] I did it again.
I got stepped on, my right foot.
He got the entirety of my foot.
[commentator 2] And that is the image of what this Vikings team is doing right now.
They are stumbling their way through this first quarter.
It was kind of unbelievable, like, where…
Just the odds, it was statistically significant
that this many things would happen where we're off-schedule.
[players grunting]
[commentator] I don't know what's going on mentally with this team,
but they gotta get it together.
They feel like, you know, the 49ers or the Seahawks,
where the front is just vertically penetrating right up the field.
I tried to walk over to him quickly, and… just kind of say,
"We're gonna be right back out there in a second. Let's just be ready to go."
If, well, just in your drop, you feel it, everybody coming, it's just man coverage.
I'm with you. No, don't get frustrated.
-Oh, I'm getting frustrated. -Hey.
[sighs deeply]
We all are, right?
Gotta keep competing every time you go out there.
-That's all I'm doing, man. Man… -I know…
That's one thing I've learned about him, gotta let him go through a little time…
It does no good to go over and start over-coaching him in the moment.
[Kirk shrieks]
[Kirk shrieks] Dang it! Dang it, Kirk!
Ready, set, hut!
[pensive music playing]
Oh! No, just sit there.
Just sit there.
[commentator] Kirk fires it right to a member of the Indianapolis Colts.
And that is a pick-six touchdown.
[analyst] Jalen Reagor is out there just running a little hitch route.
And instead of stopping, which Cousins thought he was going to do,
he started working his way back inside.
Cousins throws it where he expects Reagor to be.
Just a miscommunication.
[Kirk] I thought he was sitting there. I want him to just sit there.
He's sitting there, I'm just putting it on him. First down.
He started to move when I went to throw it.
-There's nothing you can do about that. -Yeah.
[commentator] The first half comes to a close.
And the Vikings trail, 33-nothing.
I remember at halftime, questioning… leaving.
Um, I feel really bad saying that.
But maybe I should take Cooper home so he can get a good nap.
And I'll watch the rest of the game on the TV.
[analyst] The only thing you have really left to play for is pride.
[Kirk] It was tough.
You're down 33-nothing at halftime, you're like,
"Can we just do some things to make us feel good going into next week?"
"Can we just put together a half that we win the half?"
And if we can just win this half,
we can feel better about our brand of football moving forward.
[Kevin] All we can do is battle. Right?
We're still gonna mix in the run. Not going one-dimensional.
-But the urgency after each play. -Yes.
-Keep challenging these guys. -Yes.
When we do huddle, in and out, trying to go, all right?
-Just in your mind and our mind, it's 0-0. -Yes, I got you.
See if we can score two, three times, make it interesting.
I got you.
[analyst 1] The greatest comeback in the history of the NFL was 32 points.
[analyst 2] Ooh, of the NFL?
[analyst 1] 35-3, between the Houston Oilers and the Buffalo Bills.
[analyst 2] Wow.
[commentator] And the Buffalo Bills have engineered
the greatest comeback in the history of the National Football League.
[Kirk] Here we go. Gotta dig deep. Trust mindset, right?
Let's go, man. Let's put one together right here. Come on.
Ready, set.
[suspenseful music playing]
[commentator] Cousins back on a play fake, sets his feet, looking, has time,
throws left side, caught by Jefferson up at the 25.
Good pocket. Good pocket.
-Nice pocket. -[commentator] The Vikings, first down.
[commentator 2] Cousins throws over the middle.
It's caught by K.J. Osborn on the run.
To the 40, 30, to the 20, dragging a Colt to the ten.
Yes! Finally, some positivity, and I don't care what the score is.
Ready, set, hut!
Cousins, shotgun, looks left, throws left, K.J., caught, touchdown.
Touchdown, Vikings.
Indy leads the Vikes, 33-7.
Finally, our offense is showing some life.
You still got a long, long way to go to right this ship, I'll tell you that.
[Kirk] I remember walking off the field after we scored, thinking,
"At least we're not gonna get shut out today."
"We got seven points. I'll take that."
[Kevin] Every time we touch it, we score. We'll just figure it out in the end, okay.
-Ready, set. -[commentator] 1st and goal from the 1.
Handoff, C.J. grinds inside the one.
[Kirk] Get in there, Hammer. He's in.
-Touchdown! -Yep. Thank you.
-Thank you. -[fireworks popping]
We just got to play a long game, man. Just got to play a long game.
[commentator 2] Vikings offense, looking like a completely different unit.
[commentator 1] Cousins, looks, throws left side, Jefferson's got it at the five.
Turns it up and walks into the end zone for a Vikings touchdown.
I think when we cut it to two scores, you realized you had something.
Down, one, set!
[commentator 2] This is a little bit of a hurry-up offense, of course.
Want to take advantage of the time that they have.
Down, one, set!
[commentator 1] Kirk Cousins has been dicing.
-[commentator 2] He sure has. -In this second half.
Set!
[commentator 1] Play-action. Kirk, throws to the end zone, caught.
Touchdown, Vikings!
36-28, Colts. Five and a half minutes to go in the game.
[commentator 2] There's just really no quit in this offense right now.
[Julie] That game was wild.
I sat down, and I just could barely watch. I was so nervous.
Which is a big deal for me, because I'm pretty steady.
[commentator] This is what Cousins does, this is how he prepares every single week.
He trains his brain on a daily basis for these moments,
when it comes down to it.
Looking for yet another fourth-quarter comeback,
leading the NFL in that category.
Hey, let's roll. Let's do this.
Here we go, boys.
-[slow drum beats] -[crowd] Skol!
[slow drum beats]
Skol!
[commentator] In their 1,000th game in franchise history,
the Minnesota Vikings are attempting the greatest comeback
in the history of the National Football League.
-Ready, set! -[action music playing]
[commentator] Cousins, back to pass, screen left to Dalvin.
[Kirk] Go, Dal. Go, Dal.
He's going. He's going.
Go, Dalvin. Go, Dalvin.
Go, Dalvin. Go, Dalvin. Go, Dalvin.
[commentator] Fifteen, ten, five.
-Touchdown! -[commentator 2] Yes!
[commentator] Dalvin Cook! Yes!
Yes! A 64-yard touchdown!
36-34!
[commentator 2] That was absolutely incredible.
-We gotta get this two. -Gotta get it.
Two.
[commentator] And the Vikings are gonna go for two, to potentially tie the game.
I don't like thinking about moments,
and what could come from them.
Because I think you can start to play worse.
I think when you can stay really present-focused,
you're just running the play.
[commentator] Down by two, here we go. Snap, fakes the handoff.
Looks left, looks center.
Yes!
It is T.J. Hockenson!
For the two!
The Minnesota Vikings, down 33,
have come all the way back!
And it's now 36-36.
[Kirk] Tied the game.
We just tied the game.
In one way, you feel vindicated,
that, okay, we got back. We started to find something.
But part of you doesn't really feel any better,
'cause unless we win,
all this feels for nothing.
And so… going to overtime.
[commentator] If the Vikings win, they win the NFC North.
Any points on this possession means they would win the game.
Down, one, set!
Cousins, facing a four-man rush.
Back to pass. Looks right, sees nothing. Throws, caught, Osborn, first down.
A field goal wins the game.
The clock continuing to run, 51, 50…
Over the middle, caught. Yes!
At the 40-yard line!
Twenty seconds ago, Cousins, shotgun.
Pass right, it's caught by Jefferson.
Turns it up, 35, 30, crawls to the 26.
So, seven seconds showing,
for a 40-yard field goal.
To win the game, and cap off what would be the largest comeback in NFL history.
[Kirk] Too far. Too far.
It's just too far of a kick, Dennis.
-He's got it. -Needed to be closer.
He's got it.
[tense music playing]
[commentator] Snap, spot. Joseph, right-footed kick. It is…
good!
-Keep believing. -You know it.
-Great job. -You know it!
[commentator] And the Minnesota Vikings
have completed the greatest comeback
in the history of the National Football League,
from 33 down.
[triumphant music playing]
[Kirk] NFC North champs!
[commentator] The Vikings are NFC North champions!
-Great job. -Love you, man. Love you.
-How about this hat? -Awesome, man. You earned it!
You earned every bit of it. Let's go finish this thing now.
Hell of a job, man.
Good-looking hat, man. Love you, bro. Great job!
-[crowd cheering] -[triumphant music continues]
-Let's go, baby. -Hell yeah!
All right. You guys rolling? Good?
Kirk, no team had ever come back from 33 points down and won a game until today.
-In NFL history? -How'd you pull off the biggest comeback…
-In NFL history? -…in NFL history?
We just pulled off the biggest comeback in NFL history. Okay. I need a second, Tom.
Um…
How did we do it? Team.
Obviously, there was some yelling, there was some frustration, but, um…
There was belief.
Hey, let me join this. Hey. Hey!
-Biggest comeback in NFL history. -Yeah!
"Why not slide" on three. 1-2-3…
Why not… slide?
[grunting in rhythm]
Let's go!
-[crowd cheering] -Go!
Let's go!
-Whoo! -[clapping]
Whoo!
[cheering continues]
Let's go!
[clapping]
Let's go!
There he is!
Boy, you hear me? Lead us all the way.
[Kirk] And they took a touchdown from Sully.
-What'd I say at halftime? -Five touchdowns.
That's all we need, baby! That's all we need, baby!
All we needed was five touchdowns, Pat said. I said, "Is he being sarcastic?"
And a two-point conversion.
Way to go, man. Way to go.
Great job, man. Way to battle.
Great job.
Great job, man.
Way to battle.
I love it. Great job. How 'bout that? Largest comeback in NFL history, true?
-Even more than the Bills? -Most in playoffs or regular season.
Most ever, man. Biggest comeback in history.
Whoo. To win the division.
[gentle music playing]
-[Kirk] Oh man. -[Dr. Mack] Proud of you, man.
[Kirk] Thank you. Yeah.
-It's incredible, what you're doing. -Oh my goodness. This is… It's stressful.
-Well, enjoy it too. -Yeah. No doubt.
-Yeah. -No doubt.
Oh, he got his boys? I'm going to get my boy.
I'm gonna go get Cooper.
I saw Adam bring his son Asher in.
So I thought this might be one of those moments where I can bring my son in,
and he can have this as a memory, and kind of be a part of it.
[crowd cheering]
Hey, I want to take Coop down to the locker room.
So go down to the family area. I'll go get you down there, okay?
Got me? You got me, I'll meet you out there?
He got Cooper, and brought him in the locker room.
And now, Cooper just had
this once-in-a-lifetime experience with his dad in the locker room.
-[Kirk] All right. They're here. -[Julie] I just love that so much.
That's what it's all about.
Hey, there, Coop. Coop.
-Hi, Dad. -All right.
-Wanna come in the locker room? -Sure.
-Let's go in the locker room. -Congrats.
-Thank you. -Amazing.
-Stressful. -You worked as best as you can, Dad.
[Julie chuckling] It's a grind.
-Daddy, I want to get some food. -[Kirk] We'll get some food. Don't worry.
You point to what you want, and I'll make a plate.
-You can eat it in my locker. -[woman] Yes.
-[Kirk] Want cookies? What else you want? -[Cooper] Uh…
How about chicken strips?
Uh, no, strawberries.
-Strawberries. You want strawberries? -Mm-hm.
All right, I'll make it for you. Anything else?
You want chicken fingers, don't you?
-No, I don't want any chicken fingers. -[Kirk clears throat]
[Kirk] I'll do it. Yeah, this is little… Little Coop, right here.
-I want five, since… -[Kirk] Five strawberries?
[Cooper] Five strawberries.
[Kirk] I'll get you a chicken finger in case you want some.
-All right. -[Kirk] You want a cookie.
Let me get your cookies for you, okay?
All right. Let's not eat too many of these.
-All right. -Save some for Dad.
-Yeah, just one. And then… -Just one. Ooh. That's good moderation.
All right. Let's go see my locker, okay?
Food after games this year at home games was outstanding.
Great job, Coopie.
That was probably his favorite memory of the day. [chuckles]
[player] Where's Turner?
[Kirk] Turner's back at the house with my mom.
Here you go, big guy. There's a napkin for you.
Great to win, great to come back.
I had no idea it was the largest in NFL history.
Gotta keep building from here. There'll be an enormous amount of things to correct.
-So… I'll take any questions you have. -[reporter] What's with the jacket?
What would you have worn had the comeback not…?
My wife dresses me, so, uh, I… She put it out last night.
And I looked at her like, "I don't know."
And, uh… she nodded, "You gotta do it."
So, uh… so, here we are.
What I've learned is you need to enjoy it because you work so hard.
I mean, think about two-a-days, training camp, OTAs.
You know, meetings, the hours you put in on Wednesday, Thursday, as you prepare.
To have these moments that might come around, you know,
once a season, once a decade…
You need to enjoy it, so you just wanna make sure you're taking it in.
To look back and say, I didn't miss it while I was in it.
And now that it's over, I can say I got everything out of it I could.
So moments like this, you wanna enjoy.
That's one of the reasons I wanna keep playing football, is to be…
playing long enough that my boys can be old enough to remember it.
[Patrick] I actually decided to get the land to build that
right when I signed my contract here in Kansas City.
This is gonna be for all of the Super Bowl trophies.
[both chuckle]
It's win or go home. That's why you do it.
I'm gonna go with a push sneak, okay?
-Yeah. -Just get this sucker in.
-Set, hut! -[analyst] Welcome to playoff football.
[whistle blows]
[woman] That's a touchdown.
-[Julie] I'm kind of in shock. -[Kirk] Yeah, me too.
Let's have a day. Let's have a day.
[commentator] And Mahomes throws it late.
[Patrick] Ah, shit.
[commentator] Pass is complete to the 45 to Blake Bell.
-[Patrick] Shit! -[commentator] Mahomes is hurt.
Fuck!
Dammit!
[closing theme music plays]