Embarrassing Patrick Mahomes take proves pundits are undervaluing Chiefs QB
By Austen Bundy
Patrick Mahomes' first seven seasons in the NFL have been mighty impressive. Three Lombardi Trophies and as many Super Bowl MVPs, two league MVPs and six Pro Bowl selections - all before the age of 29.
But in 2024, the passer who's been compared to future Pro Football Hall of Famer Tom Brady has gotten off to a relatively rough start despite his team's undefeated record.
Mahomes has six interceptions in five games - his career-worst was 14 last year in 16 games to put that into context. His QBR is also at a career-low at 55.8 and he's only tossed six touchdown passes, another career-low through five games.
Patrick Mahomes was unthinkably compared to Daniel jones
But the stats (for now) back a ridiculous comparison up. On Tuesday, Fox Sports Radio's Rob Parker said this about Mahomes' play this season:
"When I look at Patrick Mahomes and his play [this year], I think of Daniel Jones with a great defense," Parker said.
Is he wrong? Depends on how you view it. Of course, fans will naturally be outraged the great Mahomes is even put in the same sentence as someone as lowly as New York's Daniel Jones.
But let's examine the numbers for a moment. When you compare the two on Stathead Football, Mahomes tops Jones in seven of the 13 categories listed.
Patrick Mahomes | Stat categories | Daniel Jones |
|---|---|---|
5 | Games played | 5 |
5-0-0 | QB record | 2-3-0 |
69.4 | Completion percentage | 64.0 |
1,235 | Passing yards | 1,138 |
7.7 | Passing yards per attempt | 6.4 |
247.0 | Passing yards per game | 227.6 |
6 | Passing TDs | 6 |
6 | Interceptions | 3 |
88.9 | Passer rating | 86.3 |
23 | Rushing attempts | 34 |
83 | Rushing yards | 108 |
3.2 | Rush yards per attempt | 3.6 |
69.9 | Fantasy points | 74.3 |
On paper, Mahomes is still clearly the better quarterback but on the field this year, he's certainly slipped in terms of the quality of his play.
Jones is currently 12th in the league in QBR (61.3) while Mahomes sits four spots below him at 16th (55.8). Through five weeks that's a damning stat.
And Parker has a point about Mahomes being bailed out by his own defense. Kansas City is currently the No. 9 defense in the league (21st in passing and third in rushing) and four of the team's five wins have been by a touchdown or less.
It's understandable how Parker's assessment could sound like an inflation of Jones' recent play (he's looked a lot closer to his 2022 self) but when the context is applied, he's actually downgrading Mahomes' performance so far.
That's fair and all but if history has been any indicator, even in Mahomes' worst statistical moments he still proves the doubters and the haters wrong. He's also only played five games so far this season. He should progress as the year goes along, while Jones is more likely to regress to the mean, or worse.
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