Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes is part of a changing of the guard in AFC playoffs
Here’s an answer that would be perfect for the epic “Jeopardy!” battle to determine the show’s greatest of all-time:
Steve McNair, Tommy Maddox, Chad Pennington and Rich Gannon.
The question: Who were the starting AFC quarterbacks in the Divisional round of the playoffs following the 2002 NFL season?
It’s relevant to today’s NFL, because that was the last time the AFC’s final four didn’t include Tom Brady, Peyton Manning or Ben Roethlisberger, as NBC Sports writer Albert Breer noted:
Tennessee and McNair defeated Pittsburgh and Maddox 34-31 in overtime, while Gannon helped Oakland down New York and Chad Pennington 30-10. Manning and the Colts lost to the Jets in a Wild Card game, while Tom Brady and the Patriots missed the playoffs despite tying for the AFC East title with a 9-7 record.
Filling the void of the Big Three quarterbacks in this year’s AFC playoffs are the Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, Houston’s Deshaun Watson, Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson and Tennessee’s Ryan Tannehill.
Barring an injury, one of those four will start in the Super Bowl, ending a string of dominance by Brady, Manning and Roethlisberger that was interrupted just once by Joe Flacco.
Brady is 42 and his future plans are in question, Roethlisberger is 37 and missed most of the season because of an injury (but is expected to return) and Manning has retired.
At 31 years old, Tannehill is the oldest of this year’s quartet of AFC quarterbacks but he made his playoff debut in Saturday’s win over the Patriots. Jackson, who turns 23 on Tuesday, started one playoff game last year, and Watson, 24, will make his third playoff start on Sunday against the Chiefs.
Mahomes, 24, is the only quarterback of those four who has played in an AFC Divisional round game. It came in a 31-13 win over the Colts at Arrowhead Stadium last year.
The Chiefs are the only team still alive in the year’s playoffs, AFC or NFC, to have played in the Divisional round a year ago.
So in a way it’s Mahomes leading the way as there is a changing of the guard in the AFC playoffs.
This story was originally published January 6, 2020 at 11:46 AM.
