The Kansas City Chiefs remained undefeated thanks to a 30-24 overtime win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but for a moment the NFL world held its breath when quarterback Patrick Mahomes went down and had to be carried to the sideline Ankle injury sustained while throwing a touchdown pass.

Ultimately, Mahomes returned to the game without missing an offensive snap and led the Chiefs to an overtime victory. After the game, Mahomes and head coach Andy Reid discussed the moment Mahomes went down and how the duo responded before No. 15 returned to action.

In the first question of the postgame press conference, Reid was asked about his thoughts on Mahomes' injury and how his nerves subsided once Mahomes relaxed to return to the game.

“Well, when he was kidnapped, it wasn't easy for me,” Reid said. “I didn’t know exactly where he would be with that, but he might have the loosest ankles in America. I mean, it's ridiculous how he can come back from these things, and on top of that, he's mentally strong.” “

During his own postgame availability, Mahomes explained the injury from his perspective and discussed how he was able to return so soon after a troubling scene on the field.

“I was obviously running toward the goal line (and) was kind of determined to play the football and at the last second I saw Samaje (Perine) and awkwardly rolled my ankle a little bit,” Mahomes said. “Definitely scary, I think it hurt even more just because it's the same ankle I twisted last week so it scared me a bit but when I caught my breath and calmed down a bit, “It wasn't so bad in the end.” “We were able to go in there, get another hit and go back to the football field.”

Mahomes was then asked about the process of physically leaving the field, which began with the help of two Chiefs staff members.

“I tried to run off the field and they told me not to,” Mahomes said. “The football mentality is to walk off the field and we just scored a touchdown and they told me to take it slow and then I started running and it felt better, obviously after that I got the re-spit, you understand that.” I felt fine again, and then I took a few drops and felt fine.

While Reid praised Mahomes' toughness, he also admitted that he briefly tried to sit Mahomes down while he waited to hear more information about the injury.

“He’s a competitor,” Reid said. “I told him I was going to get him out and he really wanted to fight me. He’s a tough kid.”

Mahomes didn't admit he took Reid's concern as a fighting word, but the quarterback confirmed he had no intention of leaving the game.

“Yeah, I thought he was joking,” Mahomes said. “He said it and I said, ‘Come on. We're not doing this again.' He trusts me, and after the doctors checked it out and I was able to come back and re-administer the drops, he let me go back on the field.”

Mahomes also gave cause for optimism about his condition for Sunday's upcoming showdown against the Denver Broncos and his health for the rest of the year. Mahomes was asked if this injury was similar to the high ankle sprain he suffered in the playoffs in January 2023.

“No, I think just because that was a little bit in the playoffs a few years ago (because) the way I was being attacked stuck and it hurt a lot more,” Mahomes said. “I still have mobility in my ankle, and that was the case after this game, and of course you're going to sleep and probably have a little bit of swelling tomorrow, short week, but you go in there and take care of it and you're ready to play next week.”

Read more: Four takeaways from the Kansas City Chiefs' 30-24 win over the Buccaneers