Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are heading to their fifth-straight AFC Championship game, and the quarterback has earned even more respect from NFL fans after an incredible performance.
The Chiefs beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 27-20 at Arrowhead on Saturday, but that doesn't even begin to tell the story. Towards the end of the first quarter, Mahomes went down holding his right ankle after a sack, and didn't return until the second half.
After heading to the locker room and being heavily strapped up, Mahomes saw out the remainder of the game despite limping as he was battling the pain. But even on one strong leg, he managed to secure another play-off win and see off the Jaguars.
Mahomes threw two passing touchdowns and recorded 195 yards despite missing an entire quarter, and being heavily restricted with a lingering ankle injury. The Chiefs will now face either the Buffalo Bills or the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship game, and will have eight days to try and return to full fitness.
Even an injured Mahomes is better than most quarterback's, as he proved on Saturday night. And fans are once again amazed by Mahomes, as he continues to earn respect across the sporting world.
"Man all the words to describe how special Patrick Mahomes is. Now add the word Grit," one fan said on social media. "This game shows how good he really is," another added.
"That’s the gutsiest win of the Patrick Mahomes era. Just an incredible effort," one fan claimed. One stunned supporter said: "He was making throws before the injuries off one foot and jumping. He ends the game doing the same, but under different requirements. Wow."
Back-up quarterback Chad Henne, 37, stepped in while Mahomes was being assessed, and managed to throw a touchdown to Travis Kelce to keep the Chiefs going.
It was his first ever passing touchdown in a play-off game, despite joining the NFL in 2008. Henne is expected to retire at the end of the season, but he now has a postseason touchdown to his name.
It's expected that Mahomes will be bombarded with questions about his ankle in the build-up to the Championship game, but he assured reporters that he will be fine come next Sunday. "It's going to take a lot to keep me out of a football game. I'll be good to go," Mahomes said after the game.
