Patrick Mahomes Says He's a Chief for Life, and the Numbers Say He Has Earned Every Penny
As Kansas City wraps up a busy minicamp, the biggest story is the quarterback who just signed the most valuable contract in NFL history, and the rehab that stacks up with his highly decorated career.
It was a busy week at One Arrowhead Drive. Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed returned to Kansas City two years after being traded to the Tennessee Titans. First-round rookies, cornerback Mansoor Delane and defensive tackle Peter Woods, signed their rookie contracts, completing the 2026 draft class. And the Chiefs Brass capped it off with perhaps the most important bit of news for the long-term security of the franchise.
The headline of the week was Mahomes signing a two-year extension worth $504.75 million, making him the first player in NFL history with a contract valued at more than half a billion dollars and locking him in with the Chiefs through 2033, his age-38 season. As he posted on social media, he is “excited to be here for life,” and that should be music to Chiefs Kingdom’s ears.
“Over the last decade, Patrick has become one of the most iconic, beloved sports figures of all time,” Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said in a statement issued by the team. “He has helped lead our franchise to five Super Bowl appearances and three championships, he has been instrumental in shaping the Chiefs brand and putting Kansas City on the world stage, and on top of it all, he has been an outstanding role model in the community. Patrick is a generational talent and an elite human being, and I’m so excited he will continue to lead our team into the future.”
Entering his 10th season, Mahomes is a surefire Hall of Famer. He is a three-time Super Bowl champion, three-time Super Bowl MVP, two-time league MVP, and a six-time Pro Bowler. Despite sitting out his rookie year, he is already 22nd all-time with 267 passing touchdowns, 33rd all-time in passing yards with 35,939, and fifth all-time in passer rating.
The playoff numbers are even more staggering. He is second all-time in postseason wins with 17 and touchdown passes with 46, trailing only Tom Brady in both categories, and currently leads all-time in postseason passer rating. He is sixth all-time in playoff passing yards, and he has played in fewer games than every quarterback above him on that list.
He is still the NFL’s all-time leader in passing yards per game at 285.2, and if he plays long enough, the career records will get in line with his playoff ones. All, most likely, in red and gold.
Last season was the first blemish on an otherwise spotless career. It was his first year missing the playoffs as a starter and, more notably, his first year not reaching the AFC Championship Game.
When he went down against the Chargers, the Chiefs were 6-7 and attempting a game-winning drive. Even if they had pulled it off and moved to 7-7, making the playoffs would have been a long shot, if everyone inside Chiefs Kingdom was being honest.
Still, 2025 cannot all be placed on Mahomes. The offensive line remained a roller coaster, and the wide receiving unit was far from cohesive. What stands out from that season, though, is that despite playing just 14 games, a career low, Mahomes rushed for a career-high 422 yards. That number tells you more about how much he was carrying than any passing stat could.
Now the focus shifts to his recovery, and by all accounts, it is going exactly as you would hope. Head coach Andy Reid has been candid throughout OTAs and minicamp about what he has seen.
“I love what he did this offseason, the way he attacked the rehab,” Reid said to reporters. “He’s on course to take these next few days and get ready for camp.”
When asked if he could project a timeline, Reid was measured but optimistic.
“It looks like he’s going to be able to do some things during camp,” Reid said to reporters. “He did it out here, so I would presume in 40 days he’ll be even better than that. You go through peaks and valleys in rehabs where you might plateau for a little bit, and you don’t ever know when those are going to take place, but so far it’s been a pretty steady climb up the hill.”
Reid also made clear that the goal remains Week 1, but that Justin Fields is there if needed. Mahomes, for his part, has not wavered on where his head is at.
“That’s always going to be the goal,” Mahomes said of playing Week 1. “I don’t want to miss games. As a competitor and as a football player, I want to be there. I know it’s still a long ways away … All I can do is be great today and then continue to be great tomorrow, but I’ve gotten to where I’ve gotten to because of that mindset.”
He also addressed the mental side of recovery, which has been as much a part of the process as the physical side.
“Especially at the beginning, there was things that I wanted to do that I couldn’t do yet, so those days were hard,” Mahomes said to reporters. “I always look back at the week – we’ll take some videos; I look at the week prior, and I’m making progress. I think as long as I am making progress, I have to continue to just do that.
Even though it might not be the perfect thing to do, I have to just keep reminding myself that I am making progress, I am getting better. You have to push yourself through those days. It’s not always perfect; it’s hard days, and you have to push yourself through because you know the end goal is where you’re trying to get to, and that’s just kind of how I am.”
Reid was asked a few weeks ago after an OTA practice whether he expected Mahomes to be this far along. His answer was telling.
“I don’t want to put anything past him,” Reid said. “People say, ‘Is he ahead of schedule?’ Who made the schedule? Everybody is different, and the way he goes about it is different.”
The résumé speaks for itself. If anyone was going to be the first half-billion-dollar quarterback, it was always going to be him, whether that be by his play or the way he has attacked his rehab following his first season-ending injury.