Patrick Mahomes Explains Why Chiefs Face 'Great Challenge' Facing Cowboys' Defense

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes believes the Dallas Cowboys will be a more difficult Thanksgiving Day opponent than they would have been earlier this season.

"Obviously, they've been in the scheme a little bit longer. They've added players, but they've also gotten players healthy," Mahomes said about the Cowboys defense's first season under DC Matt Eberflus. "They're playing at a higher level than they were even playing at the beginning of the year. That comes with being more comfortable with the scheme that you're in.

"They're coached really well by Coach Eberflus. They fly around to the football, and they're kind of in the same situation as us: It's all on the line. You've got to go out there, and every week, and play your best football. And they're responded, these last few weeks, and played really good football. So, it'll be a great challenge for us."

Eberflus' defense has come up big in back-to-back Cowboys wins at the Las Vegas Raiders on Nov. 17 and against the visiting Philadelphia Eagles last Sunday.

After allowing an average of 143 opponent rushing yards per game through the first nine games of the season, the Cowboys gave up just 90 yards on the ground in the last two games combined.

That success has featured strong performances from both trade deadline acquisition Quinnen Williams, who recorded a career-high eight pressures against the Eagles last Sunday, and DeMarvion Overshown, who has recorded six tackles (one for loss) in his first two games back from knee surgery.

It might have also involved successful messaging from Eberflus, who told reporters ahead of Week 9 he wanted his players to "accept accountability" for their play.

Williams used the same word when recently describing the Cowboys' Week 12 victory: "I think everybody's taking accountability and trying to do the things that we can individually do to win football games," he said, per DallasCowboys.com's Tommy Yarrish.

The Cowboys' defense will be under even more pressure to step up given that Dak Prescott might be operating behind offensive line missing starting left tackle Tyler Guyton. ESPN's Todd Archer reported that Guyton suffered a high ankle sprain last Sunday and is "unlikely" to start against the Chiefs.

Kansas City will get a boost ahead of the holiday matchup thanks to the return of running back Isiah Pacheco, who has been out since suffering a knee injury on Oct. 27.

But the offensive line will take a hit without right guard Trey Smith, who suffered a sprained right ankle last Sunday. Tight end Noah Gray and cornerback Chris Roland-Wallace will also sit out the contest.

The Cowboys (5-5-1) are in need of a win streak in order to climb back into the NFC playoff picture, and a loss would drop their postseason odds to just four percent, per NFL Next Gen Stats. The Chiefs (6-5) would meanwhile see their playoff odds climb to 61 percent with a win, but drop to 35 percent with a loss, according to Next Gen Stats.

Thanksgiving Day kickoff in Dallas is set for 4:30 p.m. ET.