Chiefs still hungry for more after winning Super Bowl in Las Vegas

Patrick Mahomes was asked about winning a third consecutive Super Bowl less than 24 hours after leading the Chiefs to a second straight championship Sunday at Allegiant Stadium.

The sparkle in the quarterback’s eye glistened all the way from Las Vegas to Kansas City.

“It’s legendary,” Mahomes said.

The rallying cry for the Chiefs’ 2024 season came into focus that moment. It should put the rest of the NFL on notice.

Kansas City on Sunday became the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowls since the New England Patriots did so in 2004 and 2005. The Chiefs are still not content. They’re now chasing a different kind of history, as no team has ever won three straight Super Bowls.

“All you can do is come back with a fresh mindset, knowing that it’s going to be even harder and that we’ve got to continue to play our best football,” Mahomes said.

The Chiefs will enjoy their latest victory for a while before hitting the reset button. They know the championship routine by now after their earlier victories in Super Bowls 54 and 57.

“We’ll celebrate these next two weeks and get right back at it,” Mahomes said.

Kansas City coach Andy Reid will be there when the team returns to work.

There was some talk heading into the week of Reid riding off into the sunset if he won a third title. But the 65-year-old appears to be in no mood to step down. Reid said as much at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday. He repeated it Monday morning, saying retirement hasn’t even crossed his mind.

“Honestly, I haven’t even thought about it, but I get asked it,” Reid said. “I mean, I’m still kind of in awe of the game and what went on there, so I really haven’t thought why or what or anything else. But people keep asking me, and I keep saying, ‘Why didn’t (Bill) Belichick and Pete (Carroll) retire?’ Ask those old guys those questions.

“But I’m the old guy now, so I guess I’m gonna be asked that. And I really haven’t gone there. I haven’t really thought about it.”

Reid’s influence is still felt in the Chiefs’ mastery of critical situations.

Mahomes is the first player since the 1970 NFL merger to produce 210 yards passing and 59 yards rushing after halftime in a playoff game. He completed 16 of his 22 passes and helped convert 14 first downs in the fourth quarter and overtime.

That led to Kansas City mounting two game-tying drives and one game-winning drive. The Chiefs kept coming up with answers the longer the game went on. It was the sign of a resilient group full of championship mettle and tactical brilliance.

It’s also one that doesn’t plan on going away anytime soon.

“For all that hard work to pay off, it’s something we always preach and we believe we work for those moments, those end-of-game moments,” Mahomes said. “We prepare ourselves for those. To be able to have our stamp and create NFL history is something I’ll never take for granted. And hopefully, we can continue to let that thing go.”

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on X.