HENDERSON.- Patrick Mahomes is a very different quarterback than he was four years ago, when he helped the Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl to put an end to his team’s five-decade long wait for titles.
Today he is a different man. In fact, he has two children and different priorities in life.
Sometimes the two intersect and Mahomes does one job better than the other…
“I think you learn a lot from being a father, man. You learn to be patient,” said Mahomes, who will lead the AFC champion Chiefs into a rematch against the NL champion 49ers on Sunday. “You learn how to really try to boost people’s confidence, especially your kids. Throughout seasons like the one I had last year, you never lose hope, you never become too negative in adverse times. “You have to keep building people’s confidence and work hard and really be patient.”
Mahomes’ patience has certainly been tested this season.
He saw his wide receivers throw more passes than any other team in the NFL, and the rest of the Kansas City offense commit more penalties than any other team except one. He had to contain his anguish, sometimes successfully, sometimes not so much, when the referees botched a call that cost the Chiefs a game. And he finally had to accept the fact that defenses were simply not going to allow him to throw the ball all over the field anymore, and that his style of play on the field had to change.
Somehow, Mahomes had to reinvent himself and become what he previously seemed to hate: a game manager.
Unlike the championship four years ago, or the two subsequent Super Bowls that earned Mahomes a second ring, this season the Chiefs did not rely entirely on their offense. They had the second best defense in points allowed in the NFL, which had to rescue Mahomes’ attack in the middle of the season, when he showed problems.
Mahomes evolution:
While he can still throw bold no-look passes, or send a magical rocket against double coverage, he also learned to look to his running backs as safety valves when his long-pass targets were covered. He accepted that changing plays at the line on the run when opposing defenses charged was fine. Mahomes even learned that getting sacked was sometimes more beneficial to keep the clock running, as he did in the AFC championship game in Baltimore.
“I think the guys understood that we could play in a different way to win games,” Mahomes reflected.
He sounds like a quarterback who has learned a few things in six years as a starter.
Source: AP
