Kansas City Chiefs superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes spent last offseason rehabbing from surgery regarding his turf toe issue. Due to the procedure, he had to spend a lot of time in a walking boot.
However, this offseason has been a lot different. The former NFL MVP has been healthy this offseason. He recently spoke with ESPN, reflecting on his injury recovery from last season, and commented on his work this offseason.
Mahomes compared his last two offseasons. And he credited the ability to train right away as opposed to rehabbing because he feels as good as he does today.
"Whenever you come off an injury, you try to stay in shape," Mahomes said. "You try to ride the bike or do whatever you can, especially with a foot injury, but it's hard to get that running in, that sprinting in. Now I'm at a better point than I was last year as far as explosiveness and conditioning-wise.
"The no-surgery thing and being able to train right out of the gate was huge for me. I feel like I'm in a way better spot physically."
Mahomes likely already has a high amount of trust from his head coach Andy Reid. However, the signal-caller earned even more trust through his work this offseason.
The former NFL MVP has seen drastic changes in his offense. Star wide receiver Tyreek Hill was traded to the Miami Dolphins. And new faces have entered the fold, such as wide receivers Marquez Valdez-Scantling and JuJu Smith-Schuster, as well as running back Ronald Jones.
Mahomes decided to take a group of players, including these new faces, and lead conditioning and passing workouts at his offseason home in Texas.
"We talked about it, and he (Reid) had the trust in me to get the guys there," Mahomes said. "That was the biggest thing, him trusting us to get our workouts in, get our bodies right, run the routes, get a head start."
An essential thing for Mahomes is chemistry with those around him on offense. And that was part of his motivation behind putting together these workouts.
"We got some chemistry in just working with the guys for almost a month," Mahomes said. "Working out with them, throwing with them. We go to lunch, go to dinner, stuff like that. You kind of build that chemistry, and I think a big part of especially our offense is having that chemistry on the field.
"Being able to know what the guy is doing without needing to talk about it. I think it's translated. So far in the practices that we've had, we think we're on the same page and kind of having chemistry, and we're going to keep building on that."
The effort on Mahomes' part was greatly appreciated by one of the newest faces on the Chiefs' offense.
"It definitely helped." Jones told ESPN. "For him to see my speed on routes, my timing coming out of breaks and things like that, it just helps when you actually hit the field."
