[KChiefs1]

https://theathletic.com/413296/2018/...e-intangibles/

Beyond The Arm: Patrick Mahomes’ mental acuity is something special

When a player has a singular ability, it does something strange to our perception of said player. While we talk in hushed, awestricken voices about that singular talent, we tend to downplay other areas and strengths in that player’s game.

Let’s use an easy example for Chiefs fans. Whenever Jamaal Charles was brought up, it was about his breakaway speed. Everyone knew it. And because of that, his utterly elite vision and balance were ignored to the point where if you didn’t know better, you’d swear that Charles was merely average in every department except pure speed.

We’ve seen that happen with Patrick Mahomes over the last couple of years. That’s been the whole point of the Beyond The Arm series: to turn the focus towards Mahomes’ many qualities beyond arm strength that aren’t talked about. It’s especially extreme when it comes to the qualities I want to address today: intangibles and football intelligence.

Mahomes even demonstrated his mental prowess in other sports. His high school baseball coach said this of him, “he’s the smartest baseball player I’ve ever coached. He’s like having a coach out there.”