Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes overcomes ankle injury, logs pristine second half in Super Bowl 57 win: 'Wasn't coming out'

Jacob Camenker

•
Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes overcomes ankle injury, logs pristine second half in Super Bowl 57 win: 'Wasn't coming out' image

At halftime of the 2023 Super Bowl, things were looking bleak for the Chiefs.

Kansas City had a tough time moving the ball on the Eagles' defense in the first half and mustered just seven offensive points. The Chiefs trailed 24-14 and faced an uphill battle to win, as teams facing double-digit halftime deficits at the Super Bowl had a combined record of 1-26 entering Sunday's game.

Making matters worse, Patrick Mahomes had suffered an apparent aggravation of his ankle injury late in the first half.

He walked off the field gingerly and was clearly in pain on the sideline to close the half.

MORE: Patrick Mahomes suffers ankle injury in first half of Super Bowl 57

Yes, it seemed that all factors were working against the Chiefs and that the Eagles would have a great chance to earn a Super Bowl victory.

Instead, Mahomes fought through the ankle injury and led the Chiefs to a near-perfect second half in the team's 38-35 win over the Eagles. 

The Chiefs scored 24 points after halftime and managed points on each of their four drives of the period. They scored touchdowns on each of the first three and only settled for a field goal on the final one in order to burn clock to set up a game-winning field goal.

Mahomes was behind the efficient offense of the Chiefs. His 93 passing yards weren't anything special, but he completed 13 of 14 passes — his lone incompletion coming on a throwaway — and generated two touchdowns as well.

MORE: Kadarius Toney sets record with massive Super Bowl punt return vs. Eagles

More importantly, Mahomes showed that he was still a threat with his legs. He totaled 44 rushing yards during the game and was still able to move effectively after halftime despite dealing with the ankle injury.

While in the locker room at halftime, Mahomes said he did not receive a pain-killing shot.

Case and point, Mahomes' key, 26-yard scramble that put the Chiefs in range to score the game-winning field goal.

Mahomes was generally solid on that final drive, completing all three of his passes for 17 yards and never putting the Chiefs in danger of making a critical mistake. But outrunning the Philadelphia defense, balky ankle and all, will be the lasting memory of his performance for Kansas City fans.

Mahomes was asked by Terry Bradshaw exactly how he persevered through that injury at the postgame trophy ceremony. 

"I told y'all this week, there's nothing that's gonna keep me off that football field," Mahomes responded. He later added, "I knew I wasn't coming out of this game. I re-aggravated it a little bit... I'll worry about that in the offseason."

Indeed, Mahomes was able to play every snap of the Super Bowl and earn his second ring in his five seasons as a starter.

MORE: Everything you need to know about the Chiefs' Super Bowl parade

Now, he can set his sights on earning a third ring and elevating his Chiefs tenure into one of dynastic proportions.

"I'm not gonna say [we're a] dynasty yet," Mahomes said. "We're not done yet."

Jacob Camenker

Jacob Camenker Photo

Jacob Camenker first joined The Sporting News as a fantasy football intern in 2018 after his graduation from UMass. He became a full-time employee with TSN in 2021 and now serves as a senior content producer with a particular focus on the NFL. Jacob worked at NBC Sports Boston as a content producer from 2019 to 2021. He is an avid fan of the NFL Draft and ranked 10th in FantasyPros’ Mock Draft Accuracy metric in both 2021 and 2022.