The Kansas City Chiefs had a lot at stake when they took on the Pittsburgh Steelers on Christmas Day. They would secure the #1 overall playoff seed in the AFC with a win.
QB Patrick Mahomes wanted to win for the same reason. But he also had an additional, hidden motivation.
Before the game, Mahomes had promised his pregnant wife that he would win and finish top in the AFC so that he could have his third child with his entire family instead of playing the game.
“I told my wife, my pregnant wife, I’m going to get the No. 1 seed so we can have that baby,” Mahomes told Netflix’s Sideline reporter Stacey Dales. “We found a seed.”
Responding to her husband’s words on her Instagram Story, Brittany wrote, “Always keeps my promises.”
Another promise or stated goal by Mahomes this year was to complete a three-peat: winning three consecutive Super Bowls. The Chiefs had three Super Bowl rings in the Mahomes era, but those championship wins were not consecutive.
It helps that Kansas City plays its best football at the most important time of the year. His dominance over Pittsburgh on Christmas Day was most impressive. Mahomes threw for 320 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. The Chiefs defense held the Steelers to only ten points despite being without their best player, Chris Jones.
