Before Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes became the greatest football player on Earth, he was a raw but super-talented multi-year starter for the Texas Tech Red Raiders.
In Mahomes’ three seasons as Tech’s quarterback, he passed for over 11,000 yards and 93 touchdowns.
His coach? New Washington Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. Kingsbury, also a former college quarterback at Texas Tech, was head coach at his alma mater for six seasons.
Mahomes has always been complimentary of Kingsbury and his impact on his career.
“It’s someone who’s taught me a ton,” Mahomes said. “He got me, kind of out of high school, where I was a baseball player trying to play football. Basically, trying to be on my own. You’re leaving the household and kind of being on your own, and he helped me become who I am today.”
Mahomes then talked of how Kingsbury and Texas Tech were really the only ones pursuing him out of high school.
“They were really the first and only because I didn’t get recruited by much,” Mahomes said. “I mean, I got a couple of other offers from some smaller schools. They were the one school. I credit Kingsbury; he was the one that came down, saw me, talked to me.”
How did Kingsbury help Mahomes?
“Yeah, I think the biggest thing is, you see, with a lot of young quarterbacks is whenever they get to a coach, they kind of try to restrict them and kind of make them be this model of how the quarterback position is supposed to be played,” he answered. “And I think he was early in the game of just saying, ‘Hey, let’s maximize your strengths.’ He would teach me here and there how to be more mechanical and get in the pocket and the fundamentals of the game, but he never restricted who I was. It was something where I could have went somewhere, and they could have tried to make me this pocket quarterback, but he let me be who I was kind of on and off the field and it helped me become the player that I am.”
Kingsbury has coached some terrific players, with Mahomes obviously atop the list. He was Texas A&M’s offensive coordinator in 2012 when Johnny Manziel won the Heisman Trophy. He coached Baker Mayfield, Kyler Murray, and, most recently, Caleb Williams.
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— The Real Telly (@DCdude202) February 5, 2024
The Commanders hired Kingsbury as offensive coordinator in the hopes that he could develop their next franchise quarterback.