Patrick Mahomes is set up for historic touchdown streak

Not only did Patrick Mahomes put up a historic season in the NFL last season, but he’s set up for further runs of all-time greatness.

All the ink that could be spilled about Patrick Mahomes’ first season has already been printed. It feels like a rote exercise to spell it all out again.

He tossed 50 touchdowns to only 12 interceptions. He threw for 5,097 passing yards and captained 12 wins. He was an offsides play away (or several questionable calls by the officials) from leading the Chiefs to the Super Bowl. He also won the NFL’s Most Valuable Player Award.

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It was a magical season for not only Mahomes but the rest of the Chiefs. Mahomes not only ascended statistical charts and entered the record books; he also entered the hearts of Chiefs Kingdom in a way very few players will ever achieve. It’s in his approachable manner and how he humbles himself in each interview. It’s the way he can fit next to celebs as well as the everyman and how he cheers for other local sports franchises.

Mahomes, then, is the total package for the Chiefs after just a single season as the starter. Unfortunately for the NFL, he’s set up for historical greatness as well.

This offseason, Travis Kelce has already discussed being that much more in sync as a pass catcher with his new quarterback, which should reap dividends for the experienced receivers on the roster. Mahomes is also going to be more experienced, having seen everything NFL defensive coordinators could throw at him last season. He’s also working on being much more physically fit.

Mahomes already set NFL marks last year as one of two players to hit the 50/5,000 club (for touchdowns and passing yards, respectively). What we haven’t discussed much is how that miracle season will also help him establish new marks for certain streaks in the NFL.

Given the rarified air Mahomes already breathes, even if he regresses quite a bit statistically in his sophomore season as a starter, he’s still going to set marks that television announcers will boast about in 2020 for games on end.

TOUCHDOWNS IN CONSECUTIVE SEASONS

When you look at the NFL’s all-time list of touchdown leaders at quarterback, a few things really stand out:

We’re living in a golden era of quarterbacking. The NFL is indeed a passer’s league, and we’re privileged to watch several names who will be linked with football legends for as long as the game is played.
Y.A. Tittle was a badass given his totals for his time.
Patrick Mahomes is still a man among (mostly) boys, even in a passing league.

Consider the following: only seven quarterbacks in NFL history have put up 70 touchdowns or more in consecutive seasons. Here’s a list of some quarterbacks who fell just short of this total (with their best consecutive TD totals over 2 years in parentheses): Y.A. Tittle (69), Russell Wilson (69), Eli Manning (65), Tony Romo (65), Daunte Culpepper (64), Steve Young (64), George Blanda (63), Dan Fouts (63), Philip Rivers (63), Kurt Warner (62), Steve Bartkowski (61), Matt Stafford (61), and Matt Ryan (61).

As for those who crested the 70 touchdown hill (or more):

Luck barely makes it in, and Brady, who is largely considered the greatest of all time, only has five more than that. In short, if Patrick Mahomes has half the season he had last year, he will match Tom Brady’s best work over consecutive seasons.

Mahomes does have his work cut out for him to sit atop this list. Peyton Manning looked almost immortal during his late career run with the Denver Broncos, and 94 touchdowns over two seasons is just a silly number. (That’s just 5 less than Elvis Grbac had in his entire career). Yet Mahomes has already done the hard work here to get over halfway. He could experience a 10 percent drop off from last year’s totals and still end up besting Manning’s mark.

Even with major regression (30 percent), Mahomes would end the 2019 season with 35 touchdowns. That total would have been good enough for third in the NFL last season (tied with Matt Ryan and Russ Wilson) after Mahomes and Luck. It also would be enough to give Mahomes 85 total touchdowns over his first two seasons as a starter. That would be good enough for third most in NFL history and most by a longshot in terms of a player’s first full seasons under center. (As for the first two full years for Manning and Brees, the touchdown totals are 54 touchdowns and 28 touchdowns, respectively.)

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