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Patrick Mahomes doesn’t crack Joe Montana’s top 3 QBs list | A to Z Sports
K.C. has gone to five Super Bowls, winning three. However, that’s apparently not good enough for Mahomes to crack the top 3 of Montana’s top QBs list, which he revealed while visiting with the Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday.
“I’m taking the guy in Buffalo (Bills QB Josh Allen)” Montana said. “Obviously, (Cincinnati Bengals QB) Joe Burrow’s another guy I like a lot. And believe it or not, I like the guy with the (Los Angeles) Chargers
(Justin Herbert). I think [he’s] kind of gone by the wayside there. I just like the way all those three guys are. I do also like the guy in Philly (Philadelphia Eagles QB Jalen Hurts).”
McAfee began the conversation by excluding 49ers QB Brock Purdy, because he would have obviously been Montana’s top guy given their San Francisco connection. In total, Montana placed five QBs ahead of Mahomes in Purdy, Allen, Burrow, Herbert, and Hurts. When asked about Mahomes, Montana gave an odd reasoning for not putting him higher.
“I think I would have if he was younger,” Montana responded.
Patrick Mahomes Lands at No. 5 in the NFL Top 100 Rankings | The Mothership
Mahomes checked in at No. 5 in this year’s rankings, which were voted on by the players themselves. Only Eagles’ running back Saquon Barkley, Ravens’ quarterback Lamar Jackson, Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen and Bengals’ wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase earned a higher ranking than Mahomes.
Here’s a portion of what NFL.com’s Michael Baca wrote about the Chiefs’ veteran quarterback:
“The two-time most valuable player once again faced adversity with a depleted receiving corps in 2024, resulting in the second straight year without a 1,000-yard pass catcher. Of course, that didn’t prevent Mahomes from leading Kansas City to a 15-1 record as a starter and a third straight Super Bowl appearance. While he burst onto the scene with incredible passing numbers, winning football games has been the 29-year-old’s specialty — achieving such success with incredible field awareness in the pocket and on the run, with his biggest plays often coming in the fourth quarter, where he led the league in fourth-quarter comebacks (five) and game-winning drives (seven) this past season. Mahomes’ knack for making the impossible throws also sets him apart, and although the numbers might have prevented Mahomes from making his seventh straight Pro Bowl, there’s arguably no other QB you’d want with the game on the line.”
Mahomes was the fifth member of the Chiefs to appear on the list, joining center Creed Humphrey (No. 93), cornerback Trent McDuffie (No. 81), tight end Travis Kelce (No. 37) and defensive lineman Chris Jones (No. 12).
NFL Coach Exposes Alarming Concern for Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes | Newsweek
From a statistical perspective, Mahomes has been decidedly pedestrian the last two seasons. He totaled 53 passing touchdowns and 25 interceptions between 2023 and 2024, posting passer ratings of 92.6 and 93.5, respectively.
So, what exactly has happened to the man who had previously been a human highlight reel? Well, an NFL coach has exposed one major problem for Mahomes: his footwork.
“If you’re trying to teach footwork to a quarterback, you don’t turn on his tape because it’s such a backyard style,” the coach said, via Jeff Howe of The Athletic. “He’s so talented that he gets away with it, but last year his feet were the worst they’d been in years, and it was hurting him. Before that, it didn’t matter; he could throw from anywhere.”
The coach went on to say that he felt Mahomes would “have a better year” in 2025, but there is no question that Mahomes’ sudden decline over the last couple of campaigns has been alarming.
Andy Reid explains team’s plan for Brazil trip | Kansas City Star
The Chiefs practiced Sunday through Tuesday (their Friday), with the flight set for Wednesday.
“We’ll just block out that Wednesday as a travel day,” said Reid. “I mean, it’s a 10-hour-plus trip there. So that one, we’ll just give to the airlines. And then we’ll go ahead and pick it back up on Thursday down there and do the walkthrough part of it.”
Kansas City’s Thursday walkthrough in Brazil will start at 10:45 a.m. Central, followed by a media session on the ground at 11:20 a.m.
The league’s official Chiefs-Chargers injury report begins on Tuesday and will run through to Thursday.
“The rest of it will stay consistent,” said Reid. “We’ll try to keep the times consistent. There’s only a two-hour (time) difference, so we should be able to keep things relatively consistent going forward.”
Kansas City kicks off the season Friday against the Chargers at 7 p.m. Central.
Patrick Mahomes had to explain geography to Travis Kelce | Men’s Health
While recently speaking with reporters, the topic of the impact of travel for international games was discussed with Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. After stating that the trainers and coaches have done the research on preparation, he added that a few of his teammates needed a breakdown of the travel timeline and time change for the trip to Brazil.
This included Travis Kelce, whom Mahomes joked he had to explain “how the globe works” to.
“I think more than anything, it was just explaining to some guys how far the trip was,” Mahomes said. “Some guys didn’t understand how far the travel was. Travis [Kelce], even though he just was down there like last year. So I was explaining to him how the globe works.”
Chiefs should sign safety Justin Simmons | TWSN
One of the biggest reasons that Simmons likely hasn’t signed is due to money. However, now that Simmons is still on the market without a deal, the Chiefs should be able to get him for relatively cheap.
Another reason Simmons remains on the open market is age. At 31 years old, Simmons is likely only being offered a one-year deal, and that eliminates a ton of teams from the picture.
Teams that aren’t contending aren’t going to have much use for Simmons because he’s not going to be around long-term. That lowers the market and gives him fewer chances.
The teams that will want Simmons are the contenders. With the Chiefs looking for redemption in 2025, they fit that mold perfectly.
Despite having an extremely strong team overall, the Chiefs need help at safety. Between Bryan Cook, Jaden Hicks and Chamarri Conner, there’s a need for Simmons.
Even when looking at Mike Clay’s ESPN positional unit rankings, he has the Chiefs at 31 for their safeties.
It’s clear that an upgrade at that position makes a ton of sense. While Simmons isn’t the same player he once was, there’s a path for him to become a role player with the potential to even earn a starting spot.
Around the NFL
Buccaneers, OT Luke Goedeke agree to terms on four-year, $90M extension | NFL.com
Tampa Bay has agreed to terms with right tackle Luke Goedeke on a four-year, $90 million extension that includes $50 million in guaranteed money, NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo reported.
At $22.5 million per year on his new deal, Goedeke’s extension vaults him into the top four in annual average salary, landing slightly ahead of another tackle who received an extension this offseason, Green Bay’s Zach Tom.
Goedeke arrived in Tampa Bay as a second-round pick out of Central Michigan in 2022 and was forced into a starting left guard job after projected starter Aaron Stinnie suffered a torn ACL during preseason action. A year later, he was able to return to the position he knew best, manning the right tackle job and allowing the Buccaneers to move All-Pro Tristan Wirfs to the left side to form what has since been Tampa’s starting tackle pairing.
NFL’s Top 100 Players of 2025: Five things voters got wrong | NFL.com
1. Too many Eagles? Too many Eagles.
In the months after Philadelphia won its second Super Bowl title, Saquon Barkley said the 2024 Eagles were a top-five team in NFL history. The reigning Offensive Player of the Year makes a similar statement in the upcoming “America’s Game” documentary.
Based on the “Top 100” voting, it appears players around the league wouldn’t dispute that the ’24 Birds had the best collection of players in at least the last 15 years.
Case in point: Ten members of the Super Bowl champion Eagles made the “Top 100” this year. Do the rudimentary math — that’s 10 percent of the list. Since the ranking debuted after the 2010 season, no team has seen its players represented in the double digits. The Tom Brady Buccaneers had eight in 2021. Kansas City has seen excellence in large numbers, as well, but at the top of the ranking (Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Chris Jones each finished among the top 10 in 2023 and ’24). What Philly has accomplished, in the eyes of today’s players, is unheard of in recent NFL history.
But are there too many Eagles here? I’d argue yes.
Bills signing WR Gabe Davis to practice squad | ESPN
Davis, 26, visited the team Aug. 20 following a visit with the Pittsburgh Steelers, a team he visited twice. The wide receiver is continuing to recover from a torn meniscus in his left knee suffered in November.
The Bills also signed defensive tackle Jordan Phillips and safety Jordan Poyer to the practice squad last week.
Davis, a 2020 fourth-round pick by the Bills, was released by the Jacksonville Jaguars on May 7, nearly 14 months after they signed him to a three-year contract worth $39 million, including $24 million guaranteed, in his first time in free agency after the completion of his rookie deal with the Bills.
Davis caught 20 passes for 239 yards and two touchdowns in 10 games in 2024. His average of 12.7 yards per catch was the lowest of his five-year career. Davis also dropped two potential touchdown passes in the Jaguars’ 35-16 loss to the Chicago Bears in London on Oct. 13.
In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride
Andy Reid praises Patrick Mahomes’ growth as team eyes another Super Bowl run
“He’s got some guys back now for a second term,” Reid told reporters on Sunday, “so he’s familiar with them and trying to take that to another level on game day. I know that’s one of his challenges right now with the crew that we have — and he feels comfortable with the guys, so that’s a good part.”
That comfort, Reid noted, has shown itself in sharper timing and smoother connections with receivers throughout August. The head coach said Mahomes’ upbeat, relentless approach continues to set the tone for the locker room.
“He doesn’t let anything really bother him,” Reid added. “He’s just full steam ahead with a positive attitude. That’s the thing I appreciate the most — [and] I think he’s even taken it up a notch this year. He’s really having a nice camp.”
Mahomes, for his part, sounded equally energized about what lies ahead.
“I’m super excited,” the two-time MVP said. “You get to go out there and play the game that you love. We’ve got a lot of guys that are super hungry and want to go out there and put on a show. For us, it’s about going out there with the mentality of having fun playing the game we love — and trying to win football games.”
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