KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The helicopter hovered high above an X in the parking lot of Arrowhead Stadium before releasing its payload of 10,000 Superballs. The hard-rubber orbs hit the ground and rose in unison, like a swarm of locusts, before ping-ponging off in every direction on their second bounce.
With 10 NFL Films cameras capturing the stunt from every conceivable angle, Peyton Manning and Patrick Mahomes — standing together about 100 yards from the impact zone — instinctively dropped into position as if taking dueling shotgun snaps and attempted to field the Superball tsunami headed their way.
"It was even crazier than I thought," said Mahomes, the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback with the hands of a major league shortstop. "It was a cool experience, and I got to do it with a Hall of Famer like Peyton Manning. Those balls surprised me. I thought they might hurt a little bit, but it worked out well."
