KANSAS CITY, Mo. — All of a sudden nearly five years ago now, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes made his NFL debut in Denver.
Mahomes’ performance that night, including his scrambling 30-yard completion through a thicket and a thimble to Demarcus Robinson, was the start of a monumental change in the trajectory of the franchise and the psyche of Chiefs fans.
A torch flickering for nearly two generations soon was passed to the generational talent who shortly after whisked the Chiefs to their first Super Bowl appearance and triumph in 50 years and an encore among four straight AFC Championship berths.
With the phenomenon still a mere 27 years old, there remains no reason to put boundaries on what more the Chiefs (9-3) might accomplish in the Mahomes Era.
Most immediately, they verge on clinching their seventh straight AFC West with what would be a 14th straight win over the Broncos on Sunday at Empower Field at Mile High.
The return to Denver, of course, also conjures a reminder of how fickle fate might be. When Mahomes suffered what initially appeared to be a potentially catastrophic injury there three years ago, you could practically feel the city droop.
Instead, Mahomes returned a few weeks later, the first of a series of improbable comebacks on the way to their 31-20 rally over San Francisco in Super Bowl LIV.
A global audience of more than 100 million people watched that game, making for an unprecedented spotlight on Kansas City with the irresistible force of Mahomes as our most visible and compelling face.
That was the start of what would become truly international fame.
In Nigeria, for instance, few people follow the NFL or know much about football. “But they know Patrick Mahomes,” aspiring Chief Kehinde Hassan Oginni said last summer.
Walking in Italy once, coach Andy Reid recalled with a smile on Wednesday, people called out “Mahomes” to him.
But there’s something better yet to the story, something that was reiterated this week.
Given the fervor for winning football, Mahomes would be a point of pride in Kansas City even if he weren’t the prince of a person that he remains through any lens you might see him.
But what really makes him a civic treasure deserving of BIRGing (“basking in reflected glory,” as psychologists call it) is that Mahomes is a terrific ambassador for Kansas City because he is unspoiled by his success and determined to use his powers for good.
It was one thing to write about that golden element of his story leading up to that Super Bowl victory.
But it’s another to be able to still say it with conviction now, with Mahomes carrying a $500 million contract and such fame that might make a person of less character complacent or arrogant.
Instead, the guy who grew up looking out for the last kids picked in sports events and reminding coaches when it was somebody’s birthday continues to be just about as uncannily conscious of the world around him off the field as he is on.
The latest echo of that was the news this week that Mahomes had been named the Chiefs’ nominee for the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year award — a distinction the league calls its “most prestigious honor.”
The award recognizes players for their excellence on and off the field and particularly for community service, which Mahomes has generated largely through his “15 and the Mahomies Foundation” in support of underserved children.
At its third annual gala on Tuesday at the Midland Theater, Mahomes wrote Wednesday on Twitter, the foundation awarded $400,000 in grants to more than 25 charities in Kansas City.
In their news release announcing the nomination of Mahomes, the Chiefs pointed to the nearly $2.75 million in grants distributed by the foundation since its inception in 2019.
And to such actions as a $1 million donation to build the inclusive playground at Martin Luther King Park, funding free eye exams and glasses for more than 100 children
Among many other endeavors, the foundation also has donated toward alleviating food insecurity and combating illiteracy. And it has funded Camp Hope scholarships for youths battling cancer and scholarships for the children of fallen or active-duty military members.
“It’s way past what I even dreamed of it ever being,” Mahomes said. “And I think that that goes to the people that I have around me, and the people in the communities that have brought me up.
“They’ve been willing to give back and help me kind of follow this dream of giving back to the communities that helped me out so much. It takes everybody. It’s not just me.
“I’m the face of it, but there’s so many people behind the scenes that make this thing go.”
He can say the same about his life itself, including as a husband and father of two now.
“It takes Brittany being at home with the babies and taking care of them throughout the day. Making it easy when I come home,” he said. “They’re all happy and ready to see me. I get the easy part of it.”
With a certain caveat, that’s all also a bit like the way Mahomes describes his role with the Chiefs.
“I mean, for sure, it takes everybody …” he said, laughing and later adding, “I don’t say I’m the face of the Chiefs, though: That’s Coach Reid and that mustache. So I’m going to follow behind his lead.”
Just the same, Mahomes undeniably is among the faces of the NFL and surely the most widely recognized Kansas Citian — one who has further made himself of this region by investing in the Royals and Sporting KC.
With his innovative game and engaging way, he’s as fine a symbol of a Kansas City on the move as the new airport or the trailblazing Kansas City Current — co-owned by Brittany.
Never mind that he’ll always be a proud Texan.
“I’m, like, dual; I’m a Texan and a Kansas Citian, for sure,” he said, smiling. “I’m building a house here. I’m going to be here for a long time. I always will have a house in Kansas City.
“I think that’s just because I appreciate the people so much and how they’ve taken my family in and made it a part of this community.”
And vice versa, as it happens.
Even this early into Mahomes’ career, his legacy on the field is assured and he’s well on his way to a place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
But that legacy will be augmented by what he’s doing off the field. While that could be burnished by being recognized as the one of 32 nominees for the ultimate award, that will hold true regardless of whether he emerges as the overall winner in the tradition of Willie Lanier in 1972, Len Dawson in 1973, Derrick Thomas (1993), Will Shields (2003) and Brian Waters (2009).
In the meantime, Mahomes like the other candidates will wear a Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year decal on his helmet through the end of the season.
That’s just the latest badge of honor for him that by extension should make us want to bask in this reflective glory.
Reid says this all the time, but it’s no less true because of it: Cherish every moment and adventure of this unique window in time with this authentic and honorable man.
With every return to Denver, we can be reminded of both the magic of how this started and how fleeting and capricious this all might be.
Certainly, Mahomes knows that.
For that matter, he’s not immune to the stress of all this.
It’s just that he also knows he is in a prime position in so many ways.
“It’s hard … for, I think, anybody when you have this much pressure on you every single day to go out there and be your best,” he said. “But when you put the right people around yourself, you can just enjoy it.
“I think that’s what I try to do every single day. … Understand that it’s a pressure, and it’s a hard opportunity.
“But you’re blessed to have it, so you have to just enjoy it every single day. And when I stop enjoying it, I think that’s when I’ll walk away.”
With a smile, he added, “But I don’t think that’s going to happen anytime soon.”
Good thing.
Because as ever with Mahomes, we can’t wait for what’s next.
And to enjoy it all the more with the reassurance he’s someone you can admire and believe in off the field, too.
