Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes had a postseason worth of highlight-reel throws in merely his first drive of the 2022-23 NFL playoffs.
Mahomes carved up the Jacksonville Jaguars defense during Kansas City's opening possession, which covered 83 yards in 12 plays and spanned exactly six minutes. Mahomes completed 75% of his passes during the drive (6-for-8) with 57 of those 83 yards coming through the air. The superstar signal-caller hit three different pass-catchers including tight end Travis Kelce (three rec., 35 yards), JuJu Smith-Schuster and Kadarius Toney.
And while those stats might be impressive enough, the highlight-worthy throws Mahomes delivered left many shaking their heads.
Among the most noteworthy was Mahomes' side-arm sling to Smith-Schuster for one of KC's four first downs through the air:
And then there was a chain-moving jump pass to Kelce down the seam:
Oh yeah, his touchdown pass to Kelce looked incredibly easy, too:
Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence, though, helped the Jaguars answer quickly by tying the game, 7-7, after a five-play, 39-yard romp. Football fans likely are thinking how Saturday's AFC Division Round Game has the early makings of a memorable playoff tilt.