There are bad losses, and then there are losses that leave fans wondering whether their team understood what was at stake. The Kansas City Chiefs’ 20-3 defeat against the Seattle Seahawks was one of those games. Patrick Mahomes struggled, the offence managed just three points, and Seattle looked like the team that came prepared to win. Kansas City, meanwhile, looked nothing like the team its fans have come to expect.
Mahomes admitted afterward that the Chiefs weren’t ready to play. Head coach Andy Reid accepted responsibility for the team’s performance. Both comments were appropriate, but there’s another part of this story worth considering.
For the Chiefs, What Does Accountability Mean?
Accountability isn’t the same as taking all the blame. When a coach says the loss is his responsibility, he’s acknowledging his leadership role. When a quarterback admits his team wasn’t prepared, he’s recognizing a problem that needs fixing. Neither statement means one person caused the defeat.
Football is a team sport, and that’s more than a convenient phrase. Coaches prepare the players, quarterbacks lead the offence, and every player has a job to do when the ball is snapped. A team can have excellent leadership and still lose when too many parts of the team fail to click.