Packers cornerback Keisean Nixon made a crucial play late in the fourth quarter to help lift his team to a 27–19 victory over the visiting Chiefs on Sunday Night Football, intercepting Patrick Mahomes with just over five minutes remaining.
Afterward, the fifth-year defensive back explained that the two-time NFL MVP may have inadvertently revealed his intent on the play.
On first-and-10 at Green Bay’s 49-yard line, Mahomes lofted a pass intended for Skyy Moore, but the ball sailed over Moore’s head into the outstretched hands of Nixon.
When asked about the key play, Nixon told reporters that he had been watching “mannerism tape” of Mahomes leading up to the game and he noticed something in Mahomes’s pre-snap body language that helped him realize what the Chiefs offense was going to do.
Keisean Nixon on his late INT:
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) December 4, 2023
“We were watching mannerism tape earlier in the week and (Mahomes) tapped his knee and they put two off the ball and I'm like, 'Oh, I've seen this before.' I knew he was gonna run it and he ran it.” pic.twitter.com/NWOrNKb3yc
“We were watching mannerism tape earlier in the week and [Mahomes] tapped his knee, and they put two off the ball and I’m like, ‘Oh, I’ve seen this before.’ I knew he was gonna run it, and he ran it.”
Nixon’s interception ended a critical Chiefs drive and let to a field goal that extended Green Bay’s lead. Kansas City would get the ball one more time with roughly a minute left in the game, but the Chiefs’ last-gasp effort would come up short.
Nixon, along with Packers quarterback Jordan Love, later receive a game ball as the Packers celebrated their hard-fought victory and improved to 6—6 this season. Green Bay will play the Giants (4–8) next week on Monday Night Football.
