Earlier than Alex Smith started working as an ESPN NFL analyst, he mentored Kansas Metropolis Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes as a rookie throughout the 2017 season.
Throughout a current look on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Smith mentioned how Mahomes is greater than only a generational athlete taking part in the sport’s most vital place.
“He continues to vary and discover alternative ways to get you,” Smith stated about Mahomes, The Athletic’s
Nate Taylor shared. “That’s the mark of an unbelievable quarterback and competitor. I feel it really deserves extra credit score. He doesn’t get sufficient credit score for [being] such a grinder on the little issues. He’s so hungry and so unchanged regardless of all his success. It’s simply superior to look at.”
Shortly after Mahomes grew to become a three-time Tremendous Bowl champion and a three-time Tremendous Bowl Most Beneficial Participant final February, he left little doubt that he needed to a minimum of match dwelling legend Tom Brady and earn a minimal of seven championship rings. Whereas Mahomes then guided the Chiefs to a 15-1 file earlier than Kansas Metropolis punted on Week 18, he and his membership flew considerably beneath the radar as Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens and Josh Allen of the Buffalo Payments emerged as regular-season MVP favorites.
Per Pro Football Reference, Mahomes ended this previous common season ranked eighth within the NFL amongst certified gamers with a 67.7 adjusted QBR, seventh with 3,928 passing yards and ninth with 26 passing touchdowns.
Throughout his Corridor of Fame profession, Brady constructed a fame for being a ferocious competitor who lived in the film room when he wasn’t on observe fields throughout midweeks. In keeping with Chiefs normal supervisor Brett Veach, that is one other method Mahomes and Brady are related.
“[Mahomes] is a movie junkie,” Veach defined. “There’s mutual respect. He is aware of how a lot time our [personnel] guys put into it. It’s nearly like a coach. He’ll undergo [a receiver’s] total season of tape. There are not any shortcuts with him. He does the work.”
As of Friday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Chiefs as 8.5-point favorites for the Saturday afternoon dwelling divisional-round playoff sport versus the Houston Texans. If nothing else, Mahomes ought to be prepared for no matter is thrown his method by Houston coach DeMeco Ryans at Arrowhead Stadium.