Getty Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes finished second in the NFL in passing yards in 2020.
Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback in the NFL says WFAN’s Marc Malusis.
“I think he’s the most talented quarterback in the NFL,” Malusis told me by phone this afternoon.
“His arm is simply unmatched. Maybe you could compare Aaron Rodgers six or seven years ago. He’s bright and brilliant”
Malusis is on to something.
That Rodgers, Mahomes comparison isn’t new. “They both do a lot of things as an athlete,” Chiefs running back Darwin Thompson told me.
“The no-look passes, the bombs, how accurate he is. They’re two dogs. A lot of people didn’t know about Patrick Mahomes when he came out of college. Then he got drafted and hit the scene. Patrick Mahomes been a dog since he was at Texas Tech.”
During the NFL’s regular season, Mahomes guided the Chiefs to a 14-2 record, threw for 4,740 yards, 38 touchdowns and only six interceptions.
As a result, Mahomes had a 66.3% completion rate and an exceptional quarterback rating of 108.2.
Statistically, the only person to have a comparable season statistically to Mahomes was Rodgers who guided the Green Bay Packers to a 13-3 record. On the field, Rodgers threw for 4,299 yards, 48 touchdowns, only five interceptions on a 70.7% completion rate and a QB rating of 121.5 percent.
Rodgers and Mahomes both have Super Bowl rings and Super Bowl MVP’s and they both have big games this weekend in the NFL Playoffs. Mahomes and the Chiefs take on the Cleveland Browns on Sunday and the Packers play the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday.
According to odds, the Packers and the Chiefs are both favorites to win their games. The Packers are -6.5 (-110) to cover the spread, meanwhile oddsmakers are giving the Chiefs -10 (+100) over the Browns.
Marc Malusis tells me that he likes Mahomes and the Chiefs’ chances against the Browns. “I think it’s a favotable matchup,” he shares.
“He has weapons in Tyreek Hill at wide reciever and Travis Kelce at tight end.
“I’d be abosolutley stunned if the Chiefs are not in the AFC title game.”
That’s high praise.
During the offseason, Mahomes signed a massive contract worth up to $503 million.
He earned it.
In his first full season with the Chiefs in 2018, Mahomes had a quarterback rating of 113.8. In that MVP-season, Mahomes threw for 5,097 yards, 50 touchdowns and only 12 interceptions.
Last season, Mahomes threw for 4,031, 26 touchdowns and only five interceptions and they won the Super Bowl against the San Francisco 49ers.
“He’s not the greatest athlete on the field,” NFL Network’s Nate Burleson shared with me on the Scoop B Radio Podcast back in the spring.
“He can run past you I guess, really though he’s just the smartest. He can make every throw on the field. Just like Magic can make any pass on the court.”
Marshall Faulk agrees. “That’s a great analogy,” the NFL Hall of Famer shared on the Heavy Live With Scoop B Show back in the fall.
“Alex Smith was a playoff caliber quarterback. He just came off the NFC Championship with the 49ers and if you think about it in that perspective, yes. But if you’re talking about Magic as a finished product compared to this kid who you know, and let’s be real because I analyze football from reality. Second quarter middle of the third, he was shaky now. It wasn’t until — like somebody reminded Jimmy Garoppolo how much made and he had to start throwing the ball and the weight shifted back on to him but Mahomes was looking a little shaky. People… and listen, he broke out of it. He made some throws; now it was some ‘I trust you’ throws, it was some balls that were caught, it was some balls thrown and those guys made some catches and that’s what you need. You need that to happen. But all in all, I don’t want to call him Magic. I mean… Magic? The analogy lies in him going to that team and Magic going to the Lakers. I’ma keep that there.”