Patrick Mahomes is still nursing an injured right ankle and as he readies for his latest duel in a blossoming rivalry with Joe Burrow, he sought the advice of another quarterback who knows about dealing with injury and playing in Super Bowls.
Tom Brady has of course won seven of them.
“I talked to Tom a little bit, I have a good relationship with him now,” Mahomes told reporters on Thursday. “He gives me a lot of advice. Why would you not want to learn from the GOAT, man? Anytime anybody like that wants to give me advice, I’ll take it in.”
Brady commented on the toughness of Mahomes when Chiefs coach Andy Reid joined his podcast, “Lets Go! With Tom Brady, Larry Fitzgerald and Jim Gray,” earlier this week.
“He’s a tough guy and I told him this the other night,” Brady said. “That’s what champions are made of at the end of the day. I really respect Patrick for how he came out there in the second half and how pissed he was when he got taken out by coach Reid.”
Mahomes seems a bit more confident in regards to his right ankle injury. The high-ankle sprain he suffered against the Jaguars in the divisional round last Saturday has been the main buzz surrounding the rematch of last year’s AFC Championship.
“Obviously, I feel like I can still do a lot of things,” Mahomes said Thursday. “You can’t fully do exactly what you’re going to be in those moments during the game, but all I can do is prepare myself the best way possible, and then when we get in the game you hope adrenaline takes over and you can make those throws when you need to.”
The Chiefs star makes a living off using his legs to escape and extend plays. But there are questions on how the injury will impact him, particularly against a swarming and surging Bengals defense that dominated the Bills in Buffalo last week, holding them to a measly 10 points.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid at least sounded encouraged Thursday about what he saw from his QB in a walk-through practice the day before.
“His feet are doing OK right now, so he still can move ‘em,” he said. “So he’s not just throwing with all arm.”