Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has never been here before. As Kevin Patra noted for the NFL’s website, Mahomes held a record of 11-0 with 35 passing touchdowns and zero interceptions across September games as a starting pro signal-caller until the Baltimore Ravens stunned the Chiefs in Week 2 on Sept. 19. Kansas City then shockingly fell to the Los Angeles Chargers last Sunday and will enter October at 1-2 overall. 

While it’s certainly way too early for any team to scoreboard-watch or concentrate on the standings, things can quickly get out of hand during any NFL campaign. Mahomes touched upon his club’s current situation while speaking with reporters Thursday. 

“It’s exciting. Now you know you have to go,” Mahomes explained, per Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. “We’ve put our back against the wall. So how are we going to respond? I think you’ll get the best out of everybody. You’ll get the best out of every person in this locker room because you know that it’s time to go now. Every game matters if you want to do what we want to do and I’m excited to see how these guys respond, myself included.”

Most expect Kansas City will handle its business at the 1-2 Philadelphia Eagles this Sunday, but the Week 5 “Sunday Night Football” clash versus a talented Buffalo Bills side on Oct. 10 could soon become a must-win matchup for the Chiefs if they again stumble, this time at the beginning of October.