GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes returned to the field for the second half of the Super Bowl after he hurt his already ailing right ankle while getting tackled by Eagles linebacker T.J. Edwards late in the first half Sunday.
The All-Pro quarterback, who first hurt the ankle three weeks ago against Jacksonville, no doubt benefited from a longer halftime to allow for Rhianna’s performance at State Farm Stadium. He was among the first players out of the tunnel once the field was cleared of the stage, grabbing a ball and immediately beginning warm-up tosses.
Mahomes’ ankle was a big question mark for the AFC championship game, when he only had a week to recover from the initial injury, but he insisted this week that he felt good on it. Chiefs coach Andy Reid likewise said his star quarterback had no limitation as they put together the game plan for the Super Bowl.
Mahomes was moving around well on it in the first half Sunday, too. He scrambled for a big gain on Kansas City’s opening series and was doing a good job of buying time against the NFL’s top-ranked team in sacks this season.
Then came the fateful series, when the Chiefs were trying to match a touchdown that gave the Eagles a 21-14 lead.
Mahomes was flushed from the pocket, stepped forward and scrambled to his left, then Edwards lassoed him and spun him to the ground. Mahomes lay there for a moment with his facemask buried in the turf before getting to his feet and hobbling to the sideline in a near-carbon copy of the image from three weeks ago at Arrowhead Stadium.
As Mahomes sat on the bench, grimacing in pain, the Chiefs punted the ball back to the Eagles, who promptly drove downfield and added a field goal as time expired to take a 24-14 halftime lead.
In the divisional round, Mahomes managed to finish off the series on which he was hurt. But he was ordered to the locker room for X-rays, which came back negative, before Reid allowed him to return to the field for the second half.
Longtime journeyman Chad Henne led the Chiefs on a 12-play, 98-yard TD drive while Mahomes was out of that game.
Mahomes is coming off perhaps the finest season of his career, throwing for 5,250 yards to shatter the franchise record while also leading the NFL with 41 touchdown passes.
And he did all that with a different cast of characters after the Chiefs traded away Tyreek Hill and signed JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling.
His superlative play in leading Kansas City to a third AFC title in four years was enough to earn Mahomes 48 of 50 first-place votes in All-Pro voting and beat out Eagles counterpart Jalen Hurt for his second MVP award this week.
Henne is no Mahomes, but he’s a veteran quarterback with plenty of experience. The 37-year-old has thrown for more than 13,000 yards with 60 touchdown passes over a 13-year career with the Chiefs, Jaguars and Dolphins.
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