He kept saying he could not wait to go back playing and that he was ready for the Ravens game, and boy he was right!
With a pick-six right off the bat, Tyrann Mathieu showed everybody he was just fine after having Covid-19. In fact, he was the only bright component of the defense of the Kansas City Chiefs after their loss at Baltimore against the Ravens.
After two interceptions at the end of the game, during the press conference, he could not get happy about his personal accomplishments if the whole team did not win. Mathieu played well on Sunday night but did not want to hear compliments. Not after a loss like that!
“I feel kind of bad,” said Mathieu, reflecting on his personal first-quarter highlight reel. “We lost. Yeah, I mean, it feels good to make plays, you know, for your team, but I’m not too worried about personal accomplishments right now. I felt like this was a game we should have won. I mean, but that’s what happens when you let good teams stick around toward the end. They found a way to win the same way we do. So yeah, it’s got to get it cleaned up.”
Mathieu is an elite safety. Worth to be in the top 10 of the league, as he proved he could be very versatile and a true leader for his teammates. Last season, Mathieu played 60 snaps on the defensive line, 399 in the box, 287 at free safety, 414 in the slot, and 25 at outside corner. He allowed 45 catches on 69 targets for 581 yards, 257 yards after the catch, four touchdowns, seven interceptions, two pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 71.3. The Chiefs are also keen on sending Mathieu on blitzes, and he helps very often Steve Spagnuolo to play disguise schemes.
However, Sunday, something went wrong and although both sides of the ball made some mistakes, the defense was off.
“I mean, this is assignment football,” Mathieu said. “It doesn’t matter what defense you play on. It all comes down to assignments. And then from there, it’s execution. And any time you miss a line or blow an assignment against a good team, they’re going to make you pay for it. It just wasn’t our best effort defensively tonight. It’s a commitment that you have to make to yourself first,” said Mathieu.
“I think when you when you play against these kinds of teams — the Ravens, the Titans, the Browns — you have to be ready to stop the run. You have to be committed to that. And that’s not just the D-line. That’s the other guy behind them as well. So it’s a team effort, and we just have to be more committed to stopping the run.”
His strong performance on Sunday, although he did need oxygen during the game, is just an inspiration to the defense and the younger players. They will have to adjust many things to be able to win against a good division opponent on Sunday, the Los Angeles Chargers.
They will have to be much better and stop relying on the offense performance to pile up a ton of points on the board to win games. Surely, Steve Spagnuolo, Mathieu, and company will take responsibility and their leadership will help improve the unit throughout the rest of the season.
