NFL fans take aim at ‘cry baby’ Patrick Mahomes… after $460m Chiefs star complained about Christmas schedule
NFL fans have hit back at Patrick Mahomes, after the Kansas City Chiefs superstar bemoaned the NFL’s grueling Christmas schedule.
Quarterback Mahomes, who is on a 10-year, $460million contract, is heading into a brutal stretch that will see him and his teammates play three times in 11 days.
Speaking earlier this week, Mahomes slammed the NFL and told reporters ‘it’s not a good feeling’, adding: ‘I’m excited to play on Christmas to hopefully get back from what we did last year [when the Chiefs lost to the Raiders], but you never want to play this many games in this short of time.
‘It’s just not great for your body. But at the end of the day, it’s your job, your profession. You have to come to work and do it.’
Perhaps unsurprisingly, football fans took umbrage with Mahomes’ comments, comparing the multi-millionaire’s schedule to their own.
On social media, one wrote: ‘Is whittle [sic] Mahomes going to be ok with a toughy woughy schedule coming up? Try working my schedule, you crybaby.
Patrick Mahomes moaned earlier this week about the Chiefs’ relentless upcoming schedule
Fans have now taken aim at Mahomes, who earns around $46m a year as his base salary
‘Someone get this baby his passy [pacifier] to “suck it up buttercup.”‘
Another added: ‘Aweee Mahomes has to “work” 3 days in 2 weeks and is only getting paid $961k in that span.’
Others pointed out that the Steelers, Ravens, and Texans are all doing the same but to much less fanfare than the reigning Super Bowl champions.
Andy Reid’s team of superstars will embark on their brutal three-game stretch beginning this weekend when they face the Browns on Sunday, before hosting the Texans on December 21 and then traveling to the Steelers on Christmas Day.
And while the Chiefs are sitting pretty atop the AFC with a 12-1 record, Mahomes seems to be dreading his team’s next couple of weeks.
In this week’s comments, he added: ‘All you can do is focus on the game and the practice that you had that day. I try to prepare my body all year long for this stretch by tailoring my workouts, tailoring how you practice and you prepare.
‘The coaches do a great job of taking care of us on the practice field. We practice hard as anybody, but they know how to kind of dial it back when we need it.’
The Chiefs haven’t had a rest since they returned from their Week 6 bye – a fact that defensive star Chris Jones was eager to point out.
‘This is one thing I’m doing this offseason is I’m going to the NFLPA, especially with us having three games in [an 11-day] span, that we’re mandatory to have a late bye week,’ he said.
Mahomes poses with his wife Brittany (left) in a recent photo posted to her Instagram account
Mahomes (back) and teammate Travis Kelce (left) lead busy lives on and off the NFL field
‘With our schedule, it’s kind of awkward, to say the least. … That’s a conversation to have this offseason. If a team has somewhat of a schedule like that, they should get a late-season bye. We don’t need a Week [6] bye … Give it to us in Week 8, Week 10, something like that.’
Mahomes and Co. will have a week-and-a-half to recover after their Christmas Day game before facing the Broncos in Week 18 on January 5.
And if Kansas City manages to wrap up a first-round playoff bye before Week 18 – as they currently have a two-game AFC lead over the Bills – Mahomes and the team’s other starters could be held out of the final regular season game.
The quarterback then wouldn’t play until January 18 or 19 in the divisional round.