Mahomes Is About To Set TD Pass Record For First Ten Seasons

Patrick Mahomes is starting to pile up career records, and the latest has the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback being just three touchdown passes away frmo the NFL record for the most ever in a player’s first ten seasons, per a report from Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. 

The 31-year old quarterback is now in his 10th NFL season, and he’s accumulated a total of 325 career touchdown passes, counting the playoffs. He’s chasing Peyton Manning, who had 327 touchdown passes in his first 10 years in the league.

That means Mahomes needs two TD passes to tie, and three to break the record against the New York Jets on Sunday. 

There are a couple of other remarkable factoids associated with this record. As Smith pointed out, Mahomes played in only one game in his rookie season, and he didn’t throw any touchdowns in that one. In the eight-and-a-half seasons since then, Mahomes has 279 touchdown passes in the regular season, and another 46 in the playoffs.

Mahomes’ career can almost be divided in two parts at this point — BTH (before Tyreek Hill) and ATH (after Hill). The Chiefs were a touchdown machine when they had Hill, and many of their games were track meets that featured Mahomes making wild plays and leading Kansas City up and down the field. 

Not so much since Hill left, however. The Chiefs traded Hill to the Miami Dolphins when he became too expensive, and Kansas City was forced to build around Mahomes when the money inevitably came due and they had to pay the quarterback. 

That’s dictated a different approach, with the Chiefs focusing on winning with a stronger defense, which has been less exciting but nearly as successful. 

Recent years have seen Kansas City struggling to give Mahomes enough talent around him to win, and that continues to be an issue even though the Chiefs have a record of 5-2 as they welcome the Jets to Arrowhead. 

Kansas City has lost back-to-back games to the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos, and they’re in the middle of many trade rumors that have the Chiefs acquiring a receiver to give  Mahomes a viable and reliable target. 

Smith also noted that once Mahomes breaks this record, he’s likely to own it for a long time. Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is currently in his eighth NFL season, and he has 260 touchdown passes, so he’d have to throw 68 more in the next year and a half.