KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — You can count Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes among those who are not exactly thrilled about the NFL forcing the two-time defending Super Bowl champions to play three times over an 11-day span in the coming weeks.
The Chiefs are among four teams — the Texans, Steelers and Ravens are the others — who were picked to play on Christmas Day this year. But with the holiday falling on Wednesday, when the NFL has rarely played, those four also will have to play the prior Saturday to give them at least some rest. And the result is two short weeks following their games on Sunday.
“It’s not a good feeling,” Mahomes acknowledged Wednesday. “You never want to play this amount of games in this short of time. It’s not great for your body. But at the end of the day it’s your job, your profession, you have to come to work and do it.”
The Chiefs visit the Browns on Sunday, while the Ravens visit the Giants, the Steelers visit the Eagles and the Texans host the Dolphins.
On Dec. 21, the Texans head to Kansas City and the Steelers visit Baltimore, before the Christmas Day doubleheader that begins with the Chiefs heading to Pittsburgh and ends with the Ravens in Houston.
Mahomes was asked whether he has ever had three games in such a short span, he replied: “I haven’t in football.”
He has in high school baseball, of course. Maybe basketball. But certainly not football, and not at the physical level of the NFL.
“All you can do is focus on the game. The practice you have that day,” Mahomes said. “I try to prepare my body all year long for this stretch. That’s tailoring my workouts, tailoring how you practice and prepare, and the coaches do a great job of taking care of us on the practice field. We practice as hard as anybody, but they know how to dial it back when needed.”
The NFL has played on Wednesday in the past, the previous time in 2020, when the Steelers and Ravens had their game pushed back because of a COVID-19 outbreak.
In 2012, the NFL’s opener between the Giants and Cowboys took place on Wednesday so the TV networks could broadcast Barack Obama’s speech at the Democratic National Convention.
But prior to those games, the NFL had not had a Wednesday game since the Lions and Rams played on Sept. 22, 1948.
“It’s a unique situation. You just have to manage it,” said Chiefs coach Andy Reid, whose team will have played on every day of the week but Tuesday this season. “It is what it is. You make the best of it.”
It’s not as if the games involved in the Christmas stretch are throwaways, either. Each has significant playoff ramifications.
The Chiefs have already clinched the AFC West, but they are trying to fend off Buffalo and Pittsburgh for the No. 1 seed and first-round playoff bye. The Steelers are two games ahead of the Ravens in the AFC North heading into this weekend, and could clinch a playoff berth if things fall their way, while the Texans are two games up on the Colts in the AFC South.
So, how are the Chiefs approaching such an important stretch of high-profile games?
“The main thing is you get guys ready for the game. Give them a chance to get ready for the game,” Reid said. “They’re going to do whatever you present to them. You try to help them out with that. Right now we have a normal week right here. We have to take care of business here.”
NOTES: LT D.J. Humphries (hamstring) did not practice Wednesday, though he has not been ruled out for Cleveland. “Every day he’s gotten a little better,” Reid said. ... WR Hollywood Brown (shoulder) could begin practicing soon, Reid said, while declining to put a timetable on it. “He’s chomping at the bit to get out there. But he’s got to visit the with doctors and make sure he gets clearance there,” Reid said. ... CB Steven Nelson came out of retirement to join the Kansas City practice squad this week. He will not play this weekend but could be ready soon. ... K Harrison Butker (knee) will try kicking this week, though Reid was noncommittal on whether he would come off injured reserve. If he’s not ready, Matthew Wright would kick against the Browns.
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