Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was just named AFC offensive player of the month.
In December, the superstar signal-caller threw for 1,110 passing yards and eight touchdowns at a 68.5 completion percentage. Those stats yielded an impressive passer rating of 108.8.
Despite this, analysts still seem to doubt Mahomes compared to other AFC quarterbacks.
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Mahomes… or Burrow?
During a recent segment of ESPN’s First Take, former Pro Bowl offensive lineman turned NFL analyst Damien Woody was asked if he’d rather have Joe Burrow or Mahomes for the next five years.
.@damienwoody would take Joe Burrow over Patrick Mahomes over the next five years.
“I’m gonna go with Joe Burrow!”
He responded: “I’m gonna go with Joe Burrow. Listen, we know about the talent of Patrick Mahomes. We see the no-look passes, we see all the off-platform stuff — stuff that a lot of us have never seen before out of the quarterback position… I think Patrick Mahomes kind of spoke about it in that little clip right there, sometimes it’s about the intangibles and what Joe Burrow has done for that Cincinnati Bengals — not just the offense but the whole organization — it’s almost like he’s brought a chip on the shoulder to the whole organization. The confidence, the quiet swagger… and that’s all because of Joe Burrow. Joe Burrow, obviously the number one pick, he has all the physical traits, physical tools and all that. But when you talk about the quarterback position, a lot of it is about being [a] leader of men and Joe Burrow really instills that within this Bengals offense, the confidence he gives these guys.”
Woody added: “I’ve never seen a guy who was a number one overall pick and it just seems like he has a chip on his shoulder off of that, and so when you combine the physical tools with the intangibles of just wanting to go out there and destroy your opponent week in and week out like he did the Baltimore Ravens, that could be a recipe for what a lot of people don’t want to see, particularly in the AFC moving forward.”
That answer may surprise the average fan but it won’t shock the diehards of Chiefs Kingdom. The more Mahomes accomplishes, the more TV personalities seem to doubt him.
Everyone is waiting on players like Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, and now Burrow to surpass the Chiefs star, but it could be a while. These moments are welcomed bulletin board material for Mahomes and a KC roster that has not lost since Week 7.
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Week 17 Showdown
This targeted talking point was based on the Chiefs Week 17 matchup with the Bengals, who currently top the AFC North at 9-6. For Cincy, this might as well be a playoff game.
They hold a narrow one-game lead over the Ravens with the Pittsburgh Steelers 1.5-games back and the Cleveland Browns one under a .500 record. It’s the tightest division in the NFL right now and if the Bengals lose their last two, they may forfeit a lot more than the northern crown.
Everything’s on the line and as Woody noted, Burrow will have his players hungry heading into a face-off with the back-to-back defending conference champions.
Below are the near-identical stats between the two quarterbacks in 2021.
| QB | Cmp% | Passing Yds | Passing TDs | INTs | Rushing TDs/Fumbles | Air Yds Per Completion | QB Rating |
| Mahomes | 66.1% | 4,310 | 33 | 13 | 2/9 | 5.0 | 97.9 |
| Burrow | 69.9% | 4,165 | 30 | 14 | 2/5 | 6.4 | 105.0 |
Of course, Mahomes also boasts experience with an MVP award and a Super Bowl ring.
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Analyst Would Start NFL Team With This Rising QB Over Patrick Mahomes