CLEVELAND — In Cleveland this morning, and in every other NFL city, especially San Francisco, you are asking the question "how do we beat Patrick Mahomes"?
It will keep general managers, coaches and owners up most nights. Certainly, this was the year to beat Mahomes and the Chiefs. They dropped passes on Mahomes all year. They bickered on the sideline, highlighted by Travis Kelce's shove of his head coach, Andy Reid, in Super Bowl LVIII. Mahomes had never played a playoff game on the road before. He, and his Chiefs, would have to beat the Bills in Buffalo and the Ravens in Baltimore just to get to the big game. And yet Mahomes did it. He would have to rally the Chiefs from a double-digit deficit against the 49ers. It took him overtime, but he did it. And now in his three Super Bowl wins, Mahomes has rallied his team from down 10 points every time.
So how do you beat Patrick Mahomes?
Maybe the Browns had the best chance. Think about it: in the 2020 Playoffs at Arrowhead Stadium the, Browns had their chance. Mahomes was decked on a scramble in the 4th quarter. He got up with rubber legs and was knocked out of the game. The Browns had their chance and failed. Chad Henne replaced Mahomes that day and saved the Chiefs with a run of his own on 3rd and 13 leading by five points. He converted a 4th down into a first down and that was it. The Browns lost by five, but had the chance to beat the Chiefs by knocking Patrick Mahomes out of the game. And even with that, the Chiefs still won the game.
We are watching a new dynasty in the NFL. The Patriots were the last one, but the Chiefs are the new one with a 28-year-old Wonder Kid at quarterback. I remember watching Mahomes face off against Baker Mayfield one Saturday night when Mahomes was a Texas Tech Red Raider and Mayfield was an Oklahoma Sooner. The game lasted forever, until about 1:30 in the morning, because all the two did was throw the ball all over the stadium. Oklahoma won that night and I thought this Mahomes kid was just a "wild thrower," a "gunslinger." Boy, was I wrong. He is the new GOAT and he's just approaching his prime. This could go on for a while. Mahomes is much more than just a passer.
The Super Bowl can be cruel, too. Kyle Shanahan has to feel that way today. This makes three times he's coached in the Super Bowl and each time he's been on the brink of winning the Lombardi Trophy, but it slipped away. As the Falcons offensive coordinator against the Patriots, they blew a 28-3 lead in the second half and lost in overtime. When his 49ers played Mahomes in an earlier Super Bowl, Shanahan's team blew a 10-point lead with six minutes to go and lost. And then last night, two late leads dissolve and he's denied again. Shanahan has always been questioned about his decisions at critical moments on this stage. Again last night, why did he take the ball first in overtime? By letting the Chiefs have the ball second, he gave them an extra down in each series on that final drive. The Chiefs played with the comfort of knowing they had 4th down if they needed it. And they needed it early on that winning drive. How can you give Patrick Mahomes an extra down to play with? You can't!
So in Berea and every other team facility, coaches are starting to put the 2024 plan together. And maybe in a couple of days they'll glance at the television and watch the Chiefs Super Bowl Championship Parade through the streets of Kansas City. And as they watch, they have to be thinking, 'how do we beat that team? how do we beat Patrick Mahomes?' Now that will keep you up at night.
I'll see you on 3News tonight!
More of JIMMY'S TAKE:
- JIMMY'S TAKE: Making the case for Cleveland Browns players, coaches to win at NFL Honors 2024
- JIMMY'S TAKE: Cleveland Cavaliers becoming legitimate NBA title contenders
- JIMMY'S TAKE: The Cleveland Browns lost the best offensive line coach in NFL with departure of Bill Callahan
- JIMMY'S TAKE: New Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey is here to handle Deshaun Watson