10 Things Which Make Patrick Mahomes a Once In A Generation Leader and Athlete

A Legendary Leader

When I posted my Super Bowl preview on Saturday, I wrote the following words about Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes:

“Mahomes gives validity to the Great Man Theory.  This theory is a hypothesis which was popularized in the 19th century and suggests certain unique individuals possess natural skills and abilities which provide a disproportional effect in outcomes.  In other words, Mahomes is the best player on the field and is often the difference between victory and defeat regardless of what the other team does.”

On Sunday night, Mahomes confirmed my beliefs by entering rarified air by winning his third Super Bowl and third Super Bowl Most Valuable Player aware.  He is this generation’s Michael Jordan.  Afterwards, ESPN’s Louis Riddick gave the best synopsis I have heard on Mahomes’s greatness.

Click the video below to watch his comments.  Afterwards, I will provide a transcript along ten things which make Mahomes a once in a generation leader I gleaned from his comments.

Louis Riddick’s Transcript

Riddick is one of my favorite communicators.  He has the ability to put a maximum amount of wisdom and insight in as few of words as anyone in media.  The following are his words:

“When you talk about force multipliers, when you talk about guys who tangibly affect the performance of other players, their level of accountability, their level of preparation, their level of attention to detail in critical moments, and the way they affect it is they don’t want to be the guy to mess up or let down the guy they know is going to come through in those critical moments.  We talk about those kind of leaders all the time.  We talk about those kind of players that ideally we’re looking for, hypothetically almost like it’s some mythological creature that doesn’t really exist.  Well now it exists.  It truly exists right now.  We just saw it again tonight in Patrick Mahomes.  I guess I would crystalize it and sum it up by saying this – he has such an effect on this organization, not just on the football field but off the football field in the way that they prepare, the way they scout, the way the practice, the way they play games, the way they win Super Bowls.  He is an absolute bargain to the Kansas City Chiefs at half-a-billion dollars.  There’s nobody in the history of the game I’d count on more than him.  Because of his combination of physical ability and mental ability to get everyone else to raise their game.  It’s unbelievable to watch.”

10 Things Which Make Patrick Mahomes a Once In A Generation Leader and Athlete

From Riddick’s words, we glean ten things which make Patrick Mahomes a once in a generation leader and athlete.  First is the lesson followed by the supporting quote.

1. Mahomes Is a Force Multiplier – “When you talk about force multipliers, when you talk about guys who tangibly affect the performance of other players.”
2. Mahomes Holds The Entire Organization Accountable – “their level of accountability”
3. Mahomes’s Focus On Preparation – “their level of preparation”
4. Mahomes’s Attention To Detail In Critical Situations – “their level of attention to detail in critical moments”
5. Mahomes Produces In Critical Situations – “and the way they affect it is they don’t want to be the guy to mess up or let down the guy they know is going to come through in those critical moments.”
6. Mahomes Is The Living Embodiment Of Everything We Desire In A Leader – “We talk about those kind of leaders all the time.  We talk about those kind of players that ideally we’re looking for, hypothetically almost like it’s some mythological creature that doesn’t really exist.  Well now it exists.  It truly exists right now.  We just saw it again tonight in Patrick Mahomes.”
7. Mahomes Affects Not Only His Position But The Entire Organization – “he has such an effect on this organization, not just on the football field but off the football field in the way that they prepare, the way they scout, the way the practice, the way they play games, the way they win Super Bowls.”
8. Mahomes Is Worth Every Penny Of His Contract – “He is an absolute bargain to the Kansas City Chiefs at half-a-billion dollars.”
9. Mahomes Is One Of The Most Reliable Players In History – “There’s nobody in the history of the game I’d count on more than him.”
10. Mahomes’s Unique Combination Of Skills Raises Everyone Else’s Game – “Because of his combination of physical ability and mental ability to get everyone else to raise their game.  It’s unbelievable to watch.”

If you wish to become a once in a generation leader, this a good template to follow.

For more on the leadership of Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, click the following:

• 7 Things That Make Patrick Mahomes Special (Other Than His Physical Gifts)
• The #1 Reason the Kansas City Chiefs will Defeat the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII – this proved to be spot-on.
• 7 Things (All Leaders Should Know) That The Kansas City Chiefs Did At Halftime of Super Bowl LVII
• 3 Changes The Kansas City Chiefs Made To Go From A 3-4 Record To The AFC Championship Game (And Why This Matters To All Leaders)

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