Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes showed some fancy footwork as he slipped between a pair of Dolphins tackles on a 13-yard run in the third quarter of Saturday’s game.

This being the AFC Wild Card game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, Mahomes didn’t go down as he neared the end zone, and he took a big hit from Dolphins safety DeShon Elliott.

Mahomes was hit in the helmet and a piece of it went flying.

Mahomes played two snaps before the officials noticed the chunk missing from the piece of equipment protecting his head. Mahomes had to change helmets, but he wasn’t forced from the game.

The helmet of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) breaks while being hit by Miami Dolphins safety DeShon Elliott (21) on a run in the third quarter Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024, at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
When he was back on the sideline, equipment managers appeared to have difficulty getting a backup helmet to fit. It looked way too tight for his head.

NBC Sports’ Kaylee Hartung said they tried to put padding from the old helmet into the new one, but that didn’t work. They also were going to swap facemasks, but there wasn’t time before Mahomes entered the game again. With the backup helmet, Mahomes led the Chiefs on a touchdown drive that gave them a 26-7 lead with 11 minutes to play.

Mahomes told NBC Sports’ Kaylee Hartung after the game that his backup helmet didn’t fit right because it was cold and he wanted to continue wearing the one that had a chunk missing because it was warm.