For the most part, the Kansas City Chiefs’ quest for a third consecutive Super Bowl has gone swimmingly. Things haven’t always been pretty, but an ugly win is always better than a defeat. There’s just one loss that would severely damage their chances of making NFL history, and it has nothing to do with points. It’s Patrick Mahomes being unable to suit up in the playoffs.
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The injury Mahomes suffered against the Cleveland Browns isn’t season-ending. There’s an outside chance he ends up facing the Houston Texans this Saturday. But ESPN analyst Ryan Clark believes it’d be in the Chiefs’ best interest to sit Mahomes. He made a cross-sport reference when explaining his position on Monday’s episode of NFL Live.
“Patrick Mahomes is walking around with Steph Curry’s old ankles, so you need to be smart about the way you protect him going down the stretch. We know the postseason is ahead, [and] obviously the Buffalo Bills are nipping at [the Chiefs’] heels… it’s more important to me to have a healthy Patrick Mahomes than it is to force our way into home-field advantage.”
Curry is a generational NBA talent. The only thing that has slowed him down through his career is an inordinate amount of ankle injuries. The four-time champion’s most healthy stretch coincided with the prime portion of the Golden State Warriors’ dynasty.
Without him – like they are this year for the moment – the Warriors have struggled to win games.
Mahomes has also hurt his ankle repeatedly over the course of his Kansas City tenure. He did so twice in the 2023-24 postseason and appeared versus the Tampa Bay Buccaneers earlier this year before officially doing so in Week 15.
If he were subjected to the bench for the playoffs, the Chiefs would probably not be able to accomplish their three-peat.
Marcus Spears agrees with Ryan Clark’s take on Patrick Mahomes
Those opposing Clark will point to Kansas City’s potential vulnerability for the AFC’s No. 1 seed as a reason Mahomes can’t afford to rest. The Houston Texans (9-5), Pittsburgh Steelers (10-4), and Denver Broncos (9-5) are all formidable foes.
Two losses would open the door for the Buffalo Bills (11-3) to take the conference’s top spot and set up an AFC Championship on the road against MVP-favorite Josh Allen.
People are right to question if the Chiefs could defeat the Bills on the road this year. However, they likely could bank on their established history as a reason for confidence in any scenario. This wouldn’t be the case if Mahomes were inactive, which is why Marcus Spears backed Clark’s stance.
“Sit him down… home-field advantage don’t mean nothing if he ain’t healthy… Patrick Mahomes is going to be the reason that Kansas City wins the Super Bowl if it happens. It ain’t nothing else… you might want these home games, [but] if he can’t go or is going to be hampered, sit him down until the playoffs.”
The regular season really doesn’t mean much to Kansas City. Everything they’re playing for comes from January onward. Because of this, ensuring Mahomes is at maximum health should be their top priority.
Having Carson Wentz play when there are hardly any stakes makes more sense than hoping he succeeds when a championship is on the line.
