Patrick Mahomes Has Strong Response for Chiefs’ New ‘Villain’ Tag at Super Bowl
As Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid once told quarterback Patrick Mahomes, “when it’s grim, be the grim reaper.” The same message applies in winter of 2025, as NFL fans nationwide have painted KC as the new “villain” due to their recent run of success.
“I don’t even think it’s embracing being the villains,” Mahomes told a reporter at Super Bowl media night on February 3. “We embrace who we are, and we believe we play the game the right way. We believe that we play with a lot of heart and a lot of passion for the game. And then we win football games.”
The Chiefs QB ended his statement with a metaphorical exclamation point, voicing: “If winning football games makes you a villain, we’re going to keep going out there and doing it.”
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes Admits to Hating on Patriots as a Fan, But Says Hatred Turned Into Appreciation as a Player
Mahomes did sympathize with Chiefs haters a little bit on February 3.
“Yeah, it’s all fun, just cause I was that guy,” the KC signal-caller explained. “I was a [Dallas] Cowboys fan growing up and I used to hate the [New England] Patriots. I think, more than anything, I appreciate the greatness of the Patriots more now when I see how hard it was to do what they did [under Bill Belichick and Tom Brady].”
“We just go out there and play the game that we love — the way that we feel like is the right way,” Mahomes said. “And all the other stuff is kind of outside noise.”
“Hopefully, we’re just giving people a great product to watch, and they can see the love for the game that we have,” he finished his response.
Later, Mahomes also noted that when fans root against you, it sort of brings the team “closer together,” if anything.
“You become a tighter brotherhood in that locker room,” he told the media on February 3. “We can bring ourselves together, have Chiefs Kingdom with us, and go out there and try to win the game against everybody.”
Chiefs Teammate Travis Kelce Plays Dumb When It Comes to KC Hate While NFL Commissioner Defends Officiating
Mahomes answered the questions well, and to the best of his ability, but teammate Travis Kelce had a much more humorous and sarcastic reply for the recent KC hate when speaking with reporters on media night.
“People hate the Chiefs?” Kelce asked with a devilish grin on his face following a question on the topic. He added, “I didn’t know that,” while very clearly trying his best to play dumb.
A lot of the recent Chiefs “hatred” has stemmed from a perceived belief that Kansas City gets all the calls — with NFL officials supposedly rigging games in their favor.
Earlier in the night, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell addressed the idea of referees helping KC win, reacting: “Well, this sort of reminds me of the script, right? That I write a script, and I have the script for the entire season. Listen, I think a lot of those theories are things that happen on social media, and they get a new life… And so, I understand that. I think it reflects a lot of the fans’ passion, and I think it also is a reminder for us [of] how important officiating is. I think the men and women that officiate in the NFL are outstanding.”
Goodell went on to voice that NFL officials have “the highest possible standards,” and that the rigged conspiracy is “a ridiculous theory for anyone who might take it seriously.”
The commissioner did conclude that the league will continue to work on making their officiating better, while also stressing the importance of the NFL referees as the sport becomes more and more competitive.
