Five former Super Bowl quarterbacks on what makes Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes so special
When he takes the field at Allegiant Stadium for Super Bowl LVIII, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes will make NFL history.
No quarterback has ever started four Super Bowls before the age of 30. But Mahomes will do it when the Chiefs take on the 49ers in Las Vegas.
Mahomes’ greatness has been discussed by many people, but I thought it would be interesting to hear what former quarterbacks who have started in the Super Bowl have to say. Here are five of them on Mahomes.
DAN MARINO
Former Dolphins quarterback
Started in Super Bowl XIX
Marino talked about Mahomes in an interview with CBS Sports.
“He’s an amazing athlete, first of all,” Marino said. “I was a pretty good athlete, but not the kind of athlete that he is as far as how he runs the ball, makes throws from different levels, creates on his own. For me, I was able to do that a little bit, but mostly, my stuff was from the pocket.”
“He’s a really special player,” Marino added. “You can tell his competitiveness. Like you talk about, coming from behind when it’s tough. He makes it happen.”
Doug Williams
Former Washington quarterback
MVP of Super Bowl XXII
Williams spoke last month with Andscape.com about Mahomes.
“Let me tell you something, Patrick Mahomes can win anywhere,” Williams said. “With the way Pat plays, with the confidence he has and the confidence those guys (teammates) have in him, he has the ability to get it done whether they’re at home or on the road.
“Now, there are some guys out there who you don’t feel the same way about. There are some guys who don’t give their guys that type of confidence when they step on the field (in a road game). But not Pat. Home or road, it’s the same.”
“The thing about Pat is, he doesn’t think about anything except what he has to do to win,” Williams added. “The crowd doesn’t bother Pat. No matter where he is, he’s gonna fight to the last minute, last second, whatever time he has to work with.
“And Pat is going to play the same way the whole time. Whether Pat is up, Pat is losing or the game is tied, you’re not going to see anything different from him. You can’t tell what’s going on with him. Home or road, you can’t tell what he’s thinking.”
Rich Gannon
Former Raiders quarterback
Started in Super Bowl XXXVII
Gannon, who also played for the Chiefs from 1995-98, spoke with The Star.
“The guy is a special player. He’s an elite player at that position. I think his ability to process, he’s rarely fooled by what he sees from a defense,” Gannon said. “I think the other thing that people don’t talk enough about is that he’s been with Andy (Reid) his entire career. I think just the continuity is very important to his growth and development as a quarterback, not so much physically but just in terms of how he sees the game, how he processes, how he knows where his quick answer throws are, how he’s able to get out of a bad play. How he’s able to change protection.
“He’s got complete control of things where not every situation is like that in the National Football League. You watch Patrick at the line of scrimmage on third downs. A lot of conversation going on, a lot of commands that are coming out of his mouth, and so I think that’s what makes him so special. They rarely waste a play. You’re only gonna get 60 to 65 of them in the game.
“So you don’t get a lot of opportunities and if you waste one, if you run a toss into a strong side overload or you run a power play into an eight-man front and you barely get back to the line of scrimmage, to me it’s a wasted play. They don’t waste a lot of plays in Kansas City. I think a lot has to do a job that Andy does as a primary playcaller and I think that Patrick does understanding situational football.”
Tom Brady
Former Patriots, Buccaneers quarterback
Won seven Super Bowls and was Super Bowl MVP five times
Brady spoke on his podcast about Mahomes after the Chiefs beat the Bills in an AFC Divisional playoff game.
“He’s an incredible competitor, and I think it’s on display in the biggest moments,” Brady said. “So, everyone, I got a lot of questions before the game. ‘What do you think? It’s at Buffalo.’ I said, with a guy like Patrick...it doesn’t faze him. He doesn’t care that it’s in Buffalo. He wants to go out and play whoever’s the best to see how he matches up. And he always seems to play his best in the big moments.
“He’s an incredible competitor and I think it’s on display in the biggest moments. … He wants to go out and play who’s ever the best to see how he matches up. And he always seems to play his best in the big moments. … He’s got so many of the intangibles. Beyond the ability to throw the ball, run it when he does, he had a great run yesterday, I think he’s got these intangibles that everyone believes. ... He’s a fierce competitor.”
Boomer Esiason
Former Bengals quarterback
Started in Super Bowl XXIII
Esiason talked about Mahomes on his podcast following the Chiefs’ 17-10 win over the Ravens in AFC Championship Game.
“When you watch him in person, and you’re standing there and you see the pass rush come and you see his head’s always down the field and he has this knack of understanding where it’s coming from, and he’s able to deliver the ball accurately,” Esiason said. “I thought his accuracy in the first half yesterday was ridiculous. It wasn’t even a back shoulder throw, it was a back hip throw to Travis Kelce against Keith Hamilton, that unbelievable safety that the Ravens have. I mean, nobody can defend that. Nobody. And very few people can catch that. But that is what they practice.
“And in the biggest games they come through in a way that very few groups have ever come through. So you’re right about elevating everybody else because that quarterback is so great, so calm, so poised.”
This story was originally published February 2, 2024 at 11:43 AM.
