FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, February 3rd, 2020

PATRICK MAHOMES & ANDY REID SPEAK TO PETER KING FOLLOWING KANSAS CITY’S SUPER BOWL VICTORY FOR THIS WEEK’S “FMIA” COLUMN; PLUS EXTENSIVE SUPER BOWL LIV COVERAGE EXCLUSIVELY ACROSS NBC SPORTS

“How many Super Bowls have had a clear goat after three quarters turn into a clear MVP after four quarters?” – King on Patrick Mahomes

“The way (Mahomes) played in the fourth quarter is exactly why the Chiefs will one day soon make him a $40-million-a-year quarterback and be thankful for every dime they spend on that deal.” – King

“I’ve seen this before. Right when you don’t think he’s gonna do something, he rips your heart out with great plays.” – Reid on Mahomes

“Saturday’s 6-hour, 33-minute meeting was one of the most interesting meetings in my 29 years as a voter…I felt there were at least 12 or 13 worthy candidates.” – King on voting for the 2020 Hall of Fame Class

STAMFORD, Conn. – Feb. 3, 2020 – Peter King speaks with Kansas City head coach Andy Reid and Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes in the Chiefs’ locker room following their 31-20 Super Bowl LIV victory over the 49ers in this week’s edition of Football Morning in America, available now exclusively on NBCSports.com. King also recaps the turning point in yesterday’s game, hands out his Super Bowl awards, and discusses the Hall of Fame Class of 2020.

Additionally, across NBC Sports, NFL insider Mike Florio and analyst Chris Simms recap Super Bowl LIV on PFT Live and Simms Unbuttoned.

The following are highlights from this week’s edition of Football Morning in America:

SUPER BOWL LIV

King: “Sunday night was quite a night, quite a way to cap the 100th season of professional football in the United States.”

King: “This was a perfect game for the Chiefs not because they played a perfect game. It’s because the game illustrated everything (Andy) Reid has built in Kansas City…Reid built a team that trusts he’ll put them in the best position to win. He built a team that’s all-for-one, one-for-all.”

Reid on Mahomes’ struggles early in the game: “I always think with him, keep firing. I’ve seen this before. Right when you don’t think he’s gonna do something, he rips your heart out with great plays. You saw that with Larry Bird. Larry Bird might’ve gone cold for a little bit but he kept shooting. That’s what you do with the great ones. This kid’s young, but he’s great. He’s gonna do nothing but get better.”

Mahomes on his two interceptions: “The first one was horrible…then the second one, to be in field-goal range and then to throw a tipped interception…I thought that was gonna hurt us a lot more than it did. It was definitely something that made me very sick.”

Mahomes on Reid: “I wanted to win one for this coach. He’s one of the greatest coaches of all time, and I don’t think he needed the Lombardi Trophy to prove that. But now it puts all doubt aside.”

Reid (in his office) with King after the Super Bowl: “I’m not sure it’s sunk in quite yet but it’s sunk in enough to where I appreciate it. You’re humbled by it because so many people and so many years have been involved with it. I understand though, I truly understand that the game is not about one person. I’ve been fortunate to be around a lot of people, great people. It’s special. We’re in it to win it, right?”

2-3 JET CHIP WASP

King on the biggest play of the game: “’2-3 Jet Chip Wasp.’ That’s the 44-yard pass from Mahomes to (Tyreke) Hill with the Chiefs down 10 on third-and-15 with 7:13 to play. It’s the play that wobbled the 49ers’ formidable defense, the biggest play of Mahomes’ life and certainly of Hill’s…and, as it turned out, the biggest play of Andy Reid’s career too.”

King on Patrick Mahomes: “How many Super Bowls have had a clear goat after three quarters turn into a clear MVP after four quarters? How many Super Bowls have had that person not only make the biggest play of the game – at age 24, no less – but be most responsible for running the play that won it?”

Chiefs QB coach Mike Kafka on the play: “Crazy thing is, Patrick called it. He asked for it, and Andy called it.”

Reid on in-game play calling: “That’s one of the advantages of sitting over there with (Mahomes). You get a feel for what he likes.”

Mahomes on wanting to call that play: “I just wanted to run it to get it out there and give Tyreek a chance to make a play. How they were playing, I knew it would be Tyreek one on one with the safety.”

KING’S SUPER BOWL LIV AWARDS

Offensive Player of the Game: Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City.

King: “The way he played in the fourth quarter is exactly why the Chiefs will one day soon make him a $40-million-a-year quarterback and be thankful for every dime they spend on that deal.”

Defensive Player of the Game: Nick Bosa, San Francisco.

King: “I thought what was so interesting about Bosa’s game was that for 52 minutes, he was probably the best player in the game…Some of the Chiefs had very good defensive games, but none of them matched Bosa’s impact.”

Coach of the Game: Andy Reid, Kansas City.

King: “For ending his 21-year run of always being a bridesmaid…On Sunday, Reid was gutsy on fourth down, he was smart in play-calling and he out-coached 40-year-old Kyle Shanahan, who is going to be one of the best coaches in football for a while.”

Goat of the Game: Kyle Shanahan, San Francisco.

King: “With 90 seconds left and three timeouts, Shanahan could have taken enough small chances to put up at least three points before halftime. This decision didn’t lose the game, but any opportunity to score in the Super Bowl should be taken.”

HALL OF FAME VOTING

King on voting for the Hall of Fame Class of 2020: “Saturday’s 6-hour, 33-minute meeting at the Loews Hotel Miami Beach was one of the most interesting meetings in my 29 years as a voter. That’s because I walked in thinking I knew only one somewhat sure thing – Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu – in the 15-member class, but also thinking I loved the list of candidates…I felt there were at least 12 or 13 worthy candidates.”

King on his Hall of Fame ballot: “On the cut to 10, I voted for (Steve) Atwater, (Tony) Boselli, (Isaac) Bruce, (Alan) Faneca, (Steve) Hutchinson, (Edgerrin) James, (John) Lynch, (Sam) Mills, Polamalu and (Zach) Thomas.”

On the cut to five, I voted for Atwater, Boselli, Hutchinson, James and Lynch.”

King on not including Polamalu: “I believe he was one of the top five candidates this year, and I believe in voting for the best five candidates. But because I felt certain Polamalu would make it regardless of my vote, I decided to vote for three players I felt were marginal after listening to the deliberations – Atwater, Boselli and Lynch.”

King on potential enshrines next year: “I think these are four men, I believe, who exit this year’s meeting with momentum for the near future: Zach Thomas, Tony Boselli, Alan Faneca, and John Lynch.”

King on the 2020 enshrinement ceremony: “With 20 people entering the Hall this year, it’s a bit unwieldy. So the Hall will have two enshrinements: Aug. 7, the weekend of the traditional Hall of Fame Game, and another enshrinement on Sept. 17, a Thursday, and the 100th anniversary of the first pro football game ever.”

Read the rest of the FMIA column here and catch the weekly Peter King Podcast here.

 

The following are additional highlights of NBC Sports’ Super Bowl LIV coverage:

    • Super Bowl Week Content: PFT Live, Chris Simms Unbuttoned, and Rotoworld were in Miami throughout Super Bowl week, featuring player and coach interviews from Radio Row.
    • PFT Live: Mike Florio and Chris Simms react to Super Bowl LIV, draft the best moments of the game, and more. Click here for clips.
    • Simms Unbuttoned: Simms and Ahmed Fareed recap Super Bowl LIV and deep dive into Chiefs-49ers film.
    • Peter King takes a ride with Bears running back Tarik Cohen in Miami. Click here to watch.

 

A new “Football Morning in America” posts every Monday morning exclusively on NBCSports.com through the NFL season. It was announced in May that King signed an exclusive agreement with NBC Sports Group that included writing a weekly Monday morning NFL column for NBCSports.com; making regular appearances on NBCSN’s and NBC Sports Radio’s PFT Live with Mike Florio; and continuing to contribute to Football Night in America, the most-watched studio show in sports.

—NBC SPORTS—