Not many can say that they have had a better stretch over the past eight years than Patrick Mahomes. Having won MVPs and Super Bowls, he won it all as the QB for the Kansas City Chiefs. Last season seemed like the first time Mahomes was not at his best, and his stats reflected that, too, with 11 interceptions. This has led to comparisons with his fellow QBs, with one analyst even suggesting Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen have been better than the Chiefs’ star recently
“It’s an interesting place we’ve reached with the discussion of him and Josh Allen and Lamar and where he ranks in the overall hierarchy,” Robert Mays said on the Athletic Football Show. “And I think you could make a serious argument that Lamar and Josh Allen have played better than him over the last couple of years. I’m willing to hear that argument because I do think that his game has been just a little bit shakier than it was with him at his best.
“But again, I think the offense and how they’re trying to play offense goes a long way in making it feel that way. Like playing, obviously the offenses are structurally different, but playing in the gun 80–85% of the time, whatever you’re going to do, is a lot easier when you have Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins than it is when you have the receivers that the Chiefs do.”
NFL.com writer Michael Baca released his list of the league’s Top 100 players before the 2025-26 season. In the list, Jackson ranked No. 2, and Allen came in at No. 3. Mahomes, meanwhile, finished fifth overall.
The most comparable stat for these three QBs is the rushing yards. They possess dual threat abilities, unlike any other in NFL history. Throughout their careers, Jackson and Allen have better rushing yards stats than Mahomes. Jackson has 6,522 career rushing yards with 35 career rushing touchdowns. Then there’s Allen, who has 4,721 career rushing yards and 79 career rushing touchdowns. Mahomes, however, has 2,665 career rushing yards with 19 career rushing touchdowns.
If we crunch the numbers for the last two seasons, Mahomes has 729 rushing yards and 7 rushing TDs. Whereas Allen has 1,110 rushing yards and 26 rushing touchdowns, Jackson has 1,264 rushing yards and 6 touchdowns.
In the 2024 season, Patrick Mahomes threw for 3,928 yards, 26 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. It was the first time in his career that he did not reach 4,000 passing yards. He also threw only four passes that went for 40 or more yards. His average yards per pass dropped to a career-low 6.8, and his 26 touchdown passes matched the lowest total of his career. However, he still completed a career-best 67.5% of his passes.
But it would not be fair to blame Mahomes alone. The Chiefs’ offense struggled as a whole. He did not have as many big-play receivers as in previous years, and opposing defenses pressured him constantly. He was sacked 36 times and intercepted 11 times.
Then came the 2025 season, where he recorded 3,587 yards with 22 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Here also the same problem with the offensive line as Mahomes had to take 34 sacks. And after that injury ended his season as he suffered a torn ACL and LCL in his left knee against the Chargers in December.
In the 2024 season, Lamar Jackson had one of the best years of his career. He played all 17 games and threw for 4,172 yards, 41 touchdowns, and only four interceptions. He completed 66.7% of his passes and led the NFL with 8.8 yards per pass attempt. This is because Jackson had a solid wide receiver group of Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman, and Mark Andrews around him.
In 2024, Josh Allen had a strong season. He threw for 3,731 yards, made 28 touchdown passes, and had only 6 interceptions. He also completed about 66% of his passes. Because of this great performance, he won the NFL MVP award for the first time.
In 2025, he threw for 3,668 yards and 25 touchdowns, but he had 10 interceptions. His completion rate improved to about 69% because he had solid receivers like Khalil Shakir.
So statistically, it does seem like Mahomes has seen a minor dip, but a staggering stat is that the last WR he had who recorded over 1,000 yards was Tyreek Hill. Since the player left, Mahomes has done his best to carry the offensive burden on himself, all while leading the Chiefs to playoff success, something Allen and Jackson have not managed to achieve so far.
Heading into the 2026 season, he will be gunning to prove his doubters wrong. While there are doubts regarding a return date, Mahomes is trending in the right direction when it comes to recovery.
Patrick Mahomes suffered serious injuries, tearing his ACL and LCL during a fixture last season. This recovery time normally takes anywhere between 9 months and a year, but Mahomes is healing faster than expected.
SI’s Albert Breer reports that Mahomes is “way ahead of the normal ACL/LCL rehab timeline” and that “He’s trending toward being cleared for 11-on-11 work at the start of camp.”
The Chiefs are being careful with him because once he is fully cleared, he will try to push himself very hard, so they want to slowly bring him back. Even though he is improving, there is still a small risk because a knee injury can affect how fast and mobile he is, which is important for his playing style.
Let’s wait and see how well he recovers and if he will suit up for the Chiefs in Gameweek 1 against the Denver Broncos.
