Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is the most successful and decorated professional football player of his generation, but that hasn’t ever stopped him from being generous with his praise and appreciation for the accomplishments of his NFL peers.
Case in point, pass-rusher Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns broke the league’s single-season sack record on Sunday, January 4. An injured and rehabilitating Mahomes was among the first to publicly congratulate his longtime AFC opponent on that historic achievement.
“Congrats! 💪🏼💪🏼 @Flash_Garrett,” Mahomes posted to X.
Garrett brought down Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow late in the Week 18 contest, recording his 23rd sack of the year. The play pushed Garrett ahead of Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end T.J. Watt and retired pass-rusher Michael Strahan, who previously shared the record of 22.5 sacks.
Green Bay Packers pass-rusher Micah Parsons, who is out for the remainder of the year with an ACL tear, chimed in with a social media message for Garrett as well.
“Congratulation to the OG MYLES GARRETT! #legendary! @Flash_Garrett,” Parsons wrote online.
Myles Garrett, Patrick Mahomes Similarly Great on Different Sides of Football
GettyDefensive end Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns.
With his sack and a tackle for loss on the afternoon, Garrett is poised to finish the season as the league leader in both categories with 23 sacks and 33 tackles for loss.
Those accomplishments are also likely to put Garrett in line for his second Defensive Player of the Year award in the last three years. He won it back in 2023 on the strength of 17 tackles for loss and 14 sacks. Similarly, Mahomes has captured two MVP awards over his nine-year career, which is the same amount of time Garrett has been in the league.
Garrett registered just a half-sack against the Buffalo Bills in Week 16 and came up empty in that statistical category in a 13-6 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers last weekend. Despite his mini-drought of dropping quarterbacks, Garrett entered the contest against the Bengals certain that he would claim the record.
“My confidence hasn’t wavered. I’m fully confident that it’ll come, so I’m fine,” Garrett said, adding that it didn’t matter to him how the record-setting sack materialized or what it looked like on tape. “I don’t care if I run [Burrow’s] ass out of bounds. However he gets got, he gets got.”
With just over five minutes to play in the fourth quarter, Garrett got an excellent jump off the right side of the line, beating the Bengals offensive tackle into the backfield with pure speed. Burrow stepped up into the pocket but wasn’t able to escape from Garrett, who caught him from behind and brought the quarterback down.
Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs Find Themselves in Unfamiliar Territory After Disastrous Season
GettyKansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
For the first time in Mahomes’ career, he is experiencing what Garrett has known all but two of his years in the NFL — what it’s like to miss the playoffs and watch the Super Bowl decided from home.
The Chiefs had been to seven consecutive AFC championship games and three straight Super Bowls heading into the 2025 campaign. However, they entered Week 18 with a record of 6-10 and no chance to qualify for the postseason.
Kansas City’s final contest of the year is on the road against the Las Vegas Raiders. The score of that game was 3-3 at the two-minute warning of the first half, with the Raiders deep in the red zone and threatening to put more points on the board.
Patrick Mahomes Drops 1-Word Reaction to Myles Garrett Breaking NFL Sack Record