PATRICK Mahomes has cemented himself as one of the best players in NFL history.
However, back when he was a young player, the NFL wasn’t yet aware of his greatness.
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Mahomes now has three Super Bowl trophies to his name, but no one could have seen that coming when he was drafted to the Kansas City Chiefs in 2018.
Despite being the No. 10 overall pick, the league could never have seen Mahomes’ reign of terror coming.
TJ Watt and the Pittsburgh Steelers were among the first to become aware of this.
The Steelers were on the wrong end of a 42-37 win in one of the early games of his career.
Watt recalled the six-touchdown performance that Mahomes dropped on his team.
“We didn’t know enough. We definitely didn’t know enough,” he told Pro Football Talk Live.
“We left that stadium with a whole lot of respect, he still had some weapons.
“I think Sammy Watkins was on that team at the time, Tyreek (Hill), yeah, so I mean the guy was throwing the ball all around the yard.
“(We) probably thought they were going to run the ball a little more that day, but they didn’t. We learned a lesson that day.”
The league would find out soon enough, as Mahomes won the Super Bowl in his first year as a starter in 2018.
They would go on to lose the Super Bowl in 2020, but then went on to win back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023.
Of course, the Philadelphia Eagles just killed the Chiefs’ dreams of a three-peat.
After being a victim of Mahomes’ greatness years ago, Watt has become one of his biggest fans.
Being one of the best defensive players on any football field, Watt can respect Mahomes being the best offensive player.
“It’s ‘What doesn’t he do?’,” Watt said.
NFL important dates 2025 season
March 12 – Free Agency begins
April 24-26 – NFL Draft in Green Bay, Wisconsin
September 4 – 2025 season opener (TBC vs Eagles)
November 27 – Thanksgiving Day triple header
January 4, 2026 – End of regular-season
February 8, 2026 – Super Bowl LX at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California
“He does it all. He does what is required of him to win each and every week.
“He is very adaptable. It’s not like you can prepare for one thing, keep him in the pocket this week and you’ve won the game. It’s not the case.
“He can dice it up from in the pocket, get out the pocket. He just makes everyone around him better.”
The Steelers and Chiefs are in two very different places this offseason.
While the Chiefs just went to three Super Bowls in a row, the Steelers haven’t won a playoff game in years.
