Chiefs receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling was one of several Chiefs receivers with high-profile mistakes during the 2023 regular season.
But the man known as MVS has come through in the clutch during the postseason, particularly with his 32-yard reception late in the fourth quarter to seal Kansas City’s victory over Baltimore in the AFC Championship Game.
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid was asked about Valdes-Scantling and how he’s been able to come through on Thursday.
“I’m proud of him because he — he played well for us last year. This year, he had a couple of drops in big situations, didn’t hang his head, didn’t lose confidence,” Reid said in his press conference. “Kept battling, working with Pat [Mahomes]. And he just kept it going, figuring that it would turn around. And here he comes up with these last few games, where [he’s had] huge catches — very similar to what he did last year in a couple of games.
“So, I’m happy for him most of all and that he was able to recover, or whatever you want to say, from what was going on earlier.”
Reid was asked what told him that Valdes-Scantling would be able to play well in critical moments, the head coach said the receiver is smart and a hard worker.
“As long as you’ve got skill mixed in with that, then you have a chance,” Reid said. “But he’s going to work at it. And he understands that you can go into a slump. Sometimes that ball looks big, sometimes it looks small. And he worked through that, did a good job with it.”
After catching 21 passes for 315 yards with a TD in the regular season, Valdes-Scantling has five catches for 108 yards in the playoffs.
