AFC West

Sam McDowell: Patrick Mahomes wasn’t great vs. Vegas. But the Chiefs didn’t set him up to succeed.

In the aftermath of what should have been a game-altering play — one that turned the punter into a quarterback — the Chiefs earned a new set of downs, prompting Patrick Mahomes to spin around and hurry his offensive line back onto the field. And a few strides away on the sideline, head coach Andy Reid was busy for a moment, instructing a staffer not to return a slammed helmet to tight end Travis Kelce. The play clock ticked toward 35 seconds. A surreal sequence has been the center of plenty of conversations over the past couple of days, including my column immediately after the Chiefs lost to …