KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes spoke from the podium before practice on Wednesday. The Chiefs (5-5) are hosting Indianapolis (8-2) on Sunday (12 p.m. CT, CBS/KCTV, Channel 5, 96.5 The Fan).

To view his full press conference, watch and read below:

On how the team can achieve more consistency:

“Yeah, I think it just comes with the history that we’ve had and knowing that we have the guys to do it. It’s about going out there, proving it now, and getting better at practice, getting better in the film room, getting extra time at the facility. But I mean, talking with the guys throughout the building this week, I think guys are excited for the opportunity to go out there and prove that. But like I said, you gotta go out there and do it. You can’t just keep talking about it; you go out there and do it. And it starts with me, and kind of has to feed through the entire team.”

On what was most frustrating about Sunday’s loss:

“For me, it was just getting the ball with four minutes left and not getting points, and not getting a first down, or really anything. Just being in those moments before, knowing how important it is to kind of get some momentum for your team by at least moving the ball a little bit and changing the field position.

Nov 16, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) scrambles in the second quarter against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

“And not being able to do that was big. So, that was the most disappointing part for me, because even though I didn’t feel like we played to best level, our best standard, there was still an opportunity to win the football game, and we weren’t able to do that.”

On the offense more productive than last year, and whether situational football is factoring into losses:

“Yeah. I mean, I think I’ve preached that for the last few years, is like these games are a couple plays here and there. I mean, there’s not a lot of times in this league where you’re blowing teams out. And so, there’s a couple plays here and there that you have to make. We’ve been able to make those plays in these last few years, and we’re not doing that this year.

“And now, it’s about giving ourselves more opportunities to make those plays, and then when we get those opportunities, going out there and doing it. And so, I’m excited for it. We got a lot of good football teams coming up, starting off with the Colts. it’s a great opportunity to go out there and get our season turned around and get going the right direction.”

Nov 16, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Tyquan Thornton (80) catches the ball over Denver Broncos cornerback Ja’Quan McMillian (29) in the third quarter at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

On common denominators he’s seeing in missed deep balls:

“Yeah, I’m just not making the throws. It’s pretty much the biggest thing. Guys are getting open and giving me chances to make the plays down the field and I just gotta give them chances to make plays. And I mean, if you look at the one to Tyquan (Thornton) later in the game, it wasn’t necessarily the best-thrown ball, but it gave him a chance.

“And I think that’s something that I can learn from, with guys like Xavier’s (Worthy) early, is that it might not be the perfect pass that’s going to be a touchdown catch, like that, but if I can throw the ball and just give him a chance to make a play, he’ll make the play on it. And then he can make the play and score a touchdown from there. So, being better there and giving guys chances usually works out.”

Nov 2, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy (1) runs the ball after a catch in the first quarter against the Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

On angles and being on same page with receivers:

“Yeah, I mean the angle stuff is one thing. I think what I’ve learned from just playing for a while now is that those deep passes, like I said, those deep passes don’t have to be perfect. I think we always want to make the perfect throw. But if he wins like that, you can flatten his angle, you could throw the ball with more air underneath it, and then he can adjust.

“And that’s why he is the player that he is. And so why not give him that opportunity and try to throw the ball perfectly down the field? And it looks awesome when it happens, but then obviously there’s more misses than there are completions. And so, if you look at the best deep-ball throwers in the league and in the history of the NFL, they weren’t always just these perfectly thrown balls. They were giving guys chances, and they were going out there and making plays.”

On Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, whether his defenses are similar to what he showed in Cincinnati:

“They definitely do some of the same stuff. I mean, that coach, Lou Anarumo’s a great defensive coordinator, great coach, and he has his stuff. But I think what makes him such a great defensive coordinator is he kind of tailors his team, tailors his scheme to the team that he’s playing with.

“And so, he wants to go with their strengths, and so getting their guys in the best position to succeed. And even from some of the trades they made, they’ve adjusted their defense as well. And so, I think that’s something that makes him a great coach is that he’s not stuck in his ways of like how he calls the thing. He adjust his scheme to the team that’s around him, and obviously they’ve done a lot of great things this year.”

New Indianapolis Colts Defensive Coordinator Lou Anarumo speaks during a press conference Thursday, Jan. 23, 2025 at the Colts practice facility, the Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center. / Kelly Wilkinson/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

On numbers that show him playing better under center, and whether he has a preference:

“Nah. My preference is to win. So, whatever way that happens, I’m good with.”

On the challenge of attacking a defensive coordinator so willing to change for new players, like Sauce Gardner:

“I mean, obviously, there’s gonna be some difficulties there, but at the same time, we’ve played him so many times that you just go back and watch every game that you played against them. And see the different things that he’s done to you, the changeups he’s thrown at you. And then know there’s going to be a wrinkle that he has this game, and try to make a positive play out of it.

“It doesn’t have to be a home-run shot or whatever it is, but getting the ball to a checkdown, getting the ball to a guy that can get 5 to 6 yards, and then kind of getting back into the flow of the game. I think that’s something that’s important against him is that he’ll continue to throw different things at you, just to make sure that you’re not settled with what he’s calling. And that’s something that I have to continue to be great with throughout the entire football game.”

Nov 9, 2025; Berlin, Germany; Indianapolis Colts cornerback Sauce Gardner (1) breaks up a pass intended for Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London (5) during the NFL Berlin Game at Olympic Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

On how he feels about his RPO decision-making this season:

“Yeah, I feel like I’ve done a good job of it. I think there’s times where I should hand it and there’s times where I should throw the ball more. And I think you just have to continue to read and get better and better with it. I think more than anything, it’s just giving guys chances either catching the ball or running the ball, even if the perfect look isn’t there. And so, there’s times where I might have thrown it, we got 5 or 6 yards, and that that’s a positive play. But you can hand the ball off and kind of keep defenses honest as well.

“And so, that’s stuff that I’ve worked with throughout my entire career, and it’s something that’s been huge in our offense for a long time. So, I think for us, it’s just continue to get better and better each and every game.

Oct 27, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt (29) carries the ball against the Washington Commanders during the fourth quarter of the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images / Denny Medley-Imagn Images

On the RPO process and mechanics:

“I mean, there’s multiple times when Coach (Andy Heck) and Coach (Andy) Reid, they coach multiple ways of reading it. I mean, there’s times where we’re reading a certain guy, and there’s times we’re reading coverages. And there’s times where you’re reading space.

“And so, it just kind of depends on that week and the team that you’re playing, and being able to adjust accordingly. And so, like I said, our goal is to get 5 or 6 yards every single time we run RPO, either running the ball or throwing the ball, and I think we’ve done a good job of that throughout the season. But at the end of the day, like I said, sometimes you got to hand the ball off, even if the throw gets you 5 or 6 yards, just to keep the defense honest and to set up other stuff throughout the rest of the game.”

On targeting the intermediate routes more often:

“Yeah, I mean, it’s just kind of the coverages that we’ve been getting. I mean, teams are playing more man coverage against us, which gives more opportunity to throw the ball down the field, but until we prove that we can hit those throws down the field, teams are going to continue to play man coverage. And so that’s something that’s going to be important for us, is to hit some of those throws.

“And once we start hitting some of the throws, like you saw this last game, in Denver, you hit one deep throw and all of a sudden the offense opens up, and then you’re able to hit other throws as well. And so, I think we’ve always done a really good job of being able to take what’s there. It’s just about hitting some of those deeper throws, though, to loosen the defense up and then give us opportunities to throw the ball everywhere throughout the offense.”

Nov 16, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) catches the ball in the second quarter against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

On slow starts:

I mean, there’s been games where we’ve had great starts, and we’ve had great starts and we’ve usually won them, and there’s been games where we don’t have good starts and we’ve lost them this year. And so, I think just learning from those, I mean, like this last week, if you hit the throw to Xavier, that’s a great start. And then Tyquan after that. And so, it’s just little things here and there, but those little things add up. And I think that’s something that we have to continue to get better and better at.

“I have to be better at getting us going in the right direction. If I’m going to make that throw to Xavier, I got to hit it. If not, I got to hit Travis (Kelce) to keep the chains moving. And those are the decisions I have to make. And when I make those decisions, I have to go out there and execute them.”

Jan 29, 2023; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) throws in the second quarter during the AFC championship NFL game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Kansas City Chiefs, Sunday, Jan. 29, 2023, at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. The Kansas City Chiefs lead the Cincinnati Bengals, 13-6, at halftime. Mandatory Credit: Kareem Elgazzar-Imagn Images / Kareem Elgazzar-Imagn Images

On showing sense of urgency as a team leader:

“Yeah. I mean, just like if you were going into, like, a big divisional game or playoff game, whatever it is, you just know what’s at stake. And so you try to prepare yourself throughout the week and do the little extra stuff so that your mind can be settled on gameday. And then you can go out there and just play knowing that you need to go out there and win the football game.

“And know we’re playing against a really good football team that’s playing great football right now. And it’s a great opportunity at the end of the day. Obviously we’re 5-5, not where we want to be, but we get to write the rest of this this season story, and it starts this week with the Colts at Arrowhead, and I’m excited for us to go out there and do it.”

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