After the Chiefs extended their lead to 3-0 with a win over the Falcons on Sunday night, Patrick Mahomes said he needs to play better. Bill Belichick was pleased to hear that.

Belichick Pat McAfee said Mahomes’ focus on himself is exactly the mentality that makes him so great and makes his teammates want to improve their games.

“One of the things that really stood out to me was last night when they interviewed Mahomes,” Belichick said. “They’re 3-0 and you could say they’re on a roll and here we go again, big win in Atlanta and all that, but Mahomes is talking about how bad they’re playing and how hard they have to work and get better. That’s the attitude of a champion. It jumps off the screen. They won a big game and what he’s talking about is how much work they have to do, how much better they have to be, how it all starts with him. I would still take his performance over a lot of guys in this league, but here he puts it on his shoulders. When he says that and you’re another member of the team, it’s hard not to take that same attitude and say, if Patrick thinks we need to play better and he needs to play better, maybe I need to play better. I thought that was great leadership.”

Mahomes hasn’t played particularly well this season, at least not by his own standards. But Belichick believes the high standards he sets for himself are part of the reason Mahomes can lead the Chiefs to their third straight championship.