Patrick Lavon Mahomes II (born September 17, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). The son of former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher Pat Mahomes, he played college football and baseball at Texas Tech. Following his sophomore year, he quit baseball to focus solely on football. In his junior year, he led all NCAA Division I FBS players in multiple categories including passing yards (5,052) and total touchdowns (53). He was selected 10th overall by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Mahomes spent his rookie season as the backup to Alex Smith. He was named the starter in 2018 after the Chiefs traded Smith to the Washington Redskins. That season, Mahomes threw for 5,097 yards, 50 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. He became the only quarterback in history to throw for more than 5,000 yards in a single season in both college and in the NFL. He joined Peyton Manning as the only players in NFL history to throw for 5,000 yards and 50 passing touchdowns in the same season. For his performance in his first season as starter, he was named to the Pro Bowl, named first-team All-Pro, and won the NFL Offensive Player of the Year and NFL Most Valuable Player awards. Mahomes is one of four black quarterbacks to win the AP MVP award.
In the 2019 season, Mahomes led the Chiefs to Super Bowl LIV, their first Super Bowl appearance in 50 years, where they defeated the San Francisco 49ers. Mahomes was awarded the Super Bowl MVP for his performance, the second black quarterback and youngest overall to do so. He is also the third African-American quarterback to win a Super Bowl. In 2020, Mahomes signed a 10-year contract extension worth $477 million with another $26 million in potential bonuses, for a total of $503 million, making it the third-largest known contract in sporting history. The year after signing his contract, he led the Chiefs to their second consecutive Super Bowl, but they lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl LV. In the 2022 season, Mahomes won his second career NFL MVP and his second Super Bowl MVP in Super Bowl LVII over the Philadelphia Eagles, becoming the first player to win NFL MVP and Super Bowl MVP in the same year since Kurt Warner in 1999, and joined Tom Brady and Joe Montana as the only quarterbacks to win multiple regular season and Super Bowl MVPs.
Since becoming the Chiefs' starting quarterback, Mahomes has led the team to five consecutive AFC Championship Game appearances from the 2018 season through the 2022 season, which is tied for second place with Ken Stabler for the most consecutive conference championship game appearances by a quarterback. Mahomes' career accolades through six seasons in the NFL have earned him widespread praise from sports journalists, and he is considered to be one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history.
Early life
Mahomes was born on September 17, 1995, in Tyler, Texas. His father is Pat Mahomes, a former MLB pitcher. He attended Whitehouse High School in Whitehouse, Texas. He played football, baseball, and basketball. Mahomes believes that training in pitching and playing basketball improved his quarterback skills. In football, he had 4,619 passing yards, 50 passing touchdowns, 948 rushing yards, and 15 rushing touchdowns as a senior in high school. In baseball, he threw a no-hitter with 16 strikeouts in a game his senior year. He was named the Maxpreps Male Athlete of the Year for 2013–2014.
Mahomes was rated by Rivals.com as a three-star football recruit and was ranked as the 12th best dual-threat quarterback in his class. He received offers from Texas Tech, Rice, and Houston. He committed to Texas Tech University. Mahomes was also a top prospect for the 2014 Major League Baseball draft, but was not expected to be selected high due to his commitment to Texas Tech. He was selected by the Detroit Tigers in the 37th round of the 2014 MLB Draft, but did not sign a contract.
College career
Freshman
Mahomes entered his freshman season at Texas Tech as a backup to Davis Webb. He saw his first career action against Oklahoma State after Webb left the game with an injury, completing two of five passes for 20 yards for one touchdown and an interception. After Webb was again injured, Mahomes started his first career game against Texas. He completed 13 of 21 passes for 109 yards in the game. Mahomes remained the starter for the season's final three games. Against Baylor, he threw for a Big 12 freshman record 598 yards with six touchdowns and one interception. For the season, he passed for 1,547 yards, 16 touchdowns, and four interceptions.