QB Patrick Mahomes acknowledges Chiefs' tough road ahead - ESPN

ARLINGTON, Texas — Following yet another one-score loss for the Kansas City Chiefs, this time falling 31-28 to the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving, quarterback Patrick Mahomes summed up the team's bleak predicament.

«You've got to win every game now — and hope that's enough,» Mahomes said of the Chiefs' attempt to make the postseason with five games left in the regular season.

With a 6-6 record and outside the AFC's playoff picture, the Chiefs' chances of clinching a postseason berth dropped Thursday from 63% to 47%, according to ESPN Analytics. All five games remaining on the Chiefs' schedule, starting Dec. 7 against the Houston Texans, will be against AFC opponents, too. Mahomes understands that every game for the Chiefs is essentially a play-in game to keep their playoff hopes alive.

«We're going to play a lot of good teams coming up,» Mahomes said. «If we're going to make the playoffs, we're going to have to win them all. That's got to be the mindset when we step into the [training facility] when we get back.»

Just four days ago, the Chiefs believed they secured a pivotal win — and their most impressive one of their season — when they rallied from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Indianapolis Colts.

The Chiefs even started Thursday's game well. A blitz from the Chiefs on the opening possession led to cornerback Jaylen Watson intercepting quarterback Dak Prescott. The turnover set up Mahomes' 27-yard touchdown pass to receiver Rashee Rice. In fact, in his first NFL start in AT&T Stadium, a little more than 100 miles from his hometown of Tyler, Texas, Mahomes threw four touchdown passes and often used his legs to escape the pocket.

But Thursday was the first time in the Mahomes era — since 2018,