Kansas City Chiefs tackling Chris Jones said Patrick Mahomes should simply be appreciated as he praised the “once in a generation” talent that set the standard for another Super Bowl triumph.
Mahomes once again got the better of his ankle problem to propel the Chiefs to their second Super Bowl championship in four seasons in Arizona on Sunday.
The Chiefs defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35 at State Farm Stadium, while Mahomes—who took a hit late in the second quarter as he was already dealing with a high ankle sprain he suffered in the Divisional round—was the first NFL MVP since Kurt Warner in 1999 who won the Super Bowl in the same season.
Mahomes threw three passing touchdowns and was not intercepted or sacked, leaving Jones impressed with his teammate’s excellence.
“He’s a dog, next year we’ll say ‘is this his flu game?'” Jones said at a post-game press conference.
“I appreciate it, Pat is a player from once and from generation to generation and sometimes he does things that are so special that it becomes normal for him.
“We just have to appreciate Pat.”
When asked what he thought when Mahomes limped, Jones cited the standards of coach Andy Reid and the Chiefs’ QB as the reasoning behind the organization’s continued success.
He said: “I knew there was blood in the water because Pat is the type of competitor where if he’s hurt or sick he wants to come back and show everyone he’s even better now.
“That trickles down from Coach Reid, he’s the type of coach you’ll never see hurt, never see sick. Even if he’s sick, you wouldn’t even know it.
“I think one time he had to be taken to hospital after the game and no one knew. And he was working the next day, he was handing out schedules the next day. It just trickles down the type of coach that Reid is, the type of player Pat is, the type of organization we have here.”
Jones, who said he would celebrate with a bottle of Yamazaki Japanese whisky, added: “Coach Reid is legendary.
“I’m just very lucky, really a guy, a better person. He makes us all look good.”
When it was presented to Jones that he was now part of a dynasty, the 28-year-old said: “Do you think so? Well, there it goes, I don’t need to talk about it.
“I told you all this after our first Super Bowl, we went back-to-back, everyone was laughing, everyone just thought I was talking out of my ass. We got very lucky, the core here, Pat Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Bud [Harrison Butker]Tommy [Townsend]Frank Clark.
“Clark came here his freshman year and won a Super Bowl, the core here is special. It’s a special group of guys, who I got to play with in the D-line room this year. I’ve crossed that we can bring everyone back, but i still want them to get paid and be successful.
“This is the bittersweet thing about it because you have a special room and you guys win it and you know the room is always changing, always evolving, players are always coming in and out. I just want to say here I’m super, super grateful for the D line this year.
“This is probably the most selfless group I’ve been a part of. Starting with Frank Clark, the all-time number three sacks in the playoffs.
“I’m so thankful to be in the Chiefs organization, to be in this position. Just a Houston, Mississippi kid coming from the state of Mississippi. I didn’t think I had the chance to go to Kansas City. [inaudible] comes to visit me.
“Seven years later, two Super Bowl rings, four to five AFC championships and we’re still going. This team has a lot of fighting going on, I definitely feel we could be in a position to compete again for another This is a special team, we keep this core together, keep Frank Clark, keep killing it, keep me and him together, I think we can be very, very special.