A Super Bowl week in the life of star Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes
On Saturday night as he gets ready for bed, one last sleep before the Super Bowl, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes will visualize plays in his head. He will run through the course of the first 15 calls, those more scripted than the remainder of the game, and contemplate potential in-game situations.
It’s a final moment for himself.
In a week with some so few of them.
What’s the weeklong preparation like for the biggest game of your life? Well, it includes a lot of obligations.
Practice, photo shoots and interviews on top of interviews. It’s a week with demands unlike any other during the season.
By early morning, Mahomes is arriving at the Chiefs’ facility. By late morning, he’s practicing with his Chiefs teammates — you know, actually preparing for the game. By afternoon, he’s on Zoom calls with media and video chats with national TV stations. By evening, he’s studying film and his playbook, perhaps a basketball game on the TV in the background.
“You expect it now,” Mahomes said. “Last year was obviously in person, but you got a sense for what it’s like. This year, you get to do it virtually, but you understand what this week entails.”
Which is a lot.
In a typical week, Mahomes meets with the full allotment of media just once, for about 10-15 minutes. This week, Mahomes has spoken to a large contingent of media every day — 45 minutes Monday afternoon, 15 minutes Tuesday morning, 30 minutes Wednesday afternoon.
That’s doable, right? Except that represents only his group appearances. Mahomes also has separate interviews scheduled with ESPN, NFL Network, SiriusXM Radio, Westwood One radio, CBS, Sports Illustrated and others. It’s an exhausting list during a week that will determine whether the Chiefs are the first repeat NFL Super Bowl champions in 16 years.
“You kinda get used to it, I guess, in a sense,” Mahomes said. “You prepare yourself to go in and try to present the best representation of not only yourself but of the team. I try to do that every single (interview).”
It’s hours of talking every day and trying not to slip up and say something you shouldn’t. Mahomes has never had much of an issue with the latter. The former? It can get draining. Especially this week.
On Monday, his first obligation with the media on Opening Night, Mahomes answered more than two dozen questions about one topic: Tom Brady. As reporters cycle in and out of virtual rooms, sometimes unaware of what has already been asked, questions are repeated. Each time, Mahomes answers as though he’s never heard it before. The Brady questions were still coming in droves later in the week, and only once did Mahomes say, “like I said before.”
“As far as the chatter (on the quarterback matchup) goes, you understand why the talk is the talk,” Mahomes said. “You understand how great Tom Brady is (and) that it’s a big game to play in the Super Bowl against him.”
Oh, yeah, the game. There’s that preparation, too.
This is where experience comes into play. Andy Reid is coaching in his third Super Bowl, his second with the Chiefs after one in Philadelphia. He adjusted accordingly. A year ago, the team flew to Miami one week before the game to fulfill commitments in Florida. So the Chiefs put in their full game plan during the bye week, when the outside responsibilities were limited.
Because of COVID-19 concerns, the Chiefs will arrive in Tampa Bay Saturday, just one day before the Super Bowl. But Reid stuck with last year’s itinerary anyway.
“We set our practice stuff around that and made sure we were able to get done what we needed to get done football-wise,” Reid said. “We got a lot of work done last week when it wasn’t quite as chaotic; the demands weren’t quite as heavy.”
It gets a little easier from here. Mahomes made his final trip to the podium Wednesday. Reid is done Thursday.
After that, all eyes on the game. Finally.
This story was originally published February 5, 2021 at 5:00 AM.