Chiefs Mahomes Still Scarred By Super Bowl Loss to Tampa

Winning three Super Bowls is not easy. Winning three Super Bowls as a quarterback is near impossible, especially in the modern age of free agency. For Chiefs Patrick Mahomes, going for his fourth title in six years may seem like light work for the former MVP but the fire that remains lit inside him drives the Chiefs to achieve what so few have done in the past.

There are levels to how competitive a person can be and yet despite winning a Super Bowl on three separate occasions, it's the loss that remains on Mahomes' mind.

Despite finishing the 2020 season with the best record in football and having already notched a win over them earlier that season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, led by Tom Brady put a hurting on Mahomes in a 31-9 Kansas City loss during Super Bowl LV.

Mahomes entered that game having suffered several losses to his offensive line and despite his best efforts which included some outrageous throws, nothing seemed to work as the Buccaneers swarming defense dominated the game.

Regardless of the fact he's won two titles since and having been removed from the game for several years, that loss remains the biggest blemish on Mahomes' Hall of Fame resume and it's not something he takes lightly.

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes asked if there’s a loss that keeps him up at night: “The Super Bowl vs. Tampa. Pretty easy.”
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) February 5, 2025

It is that mindset that allows Mahomes to be sharp in everything he does and it's what keeps him motivated every training camp despite knowing he can not eclipse the results of the previous year. An "I hate losing more than I enjoy winning" ideology that has propelled Kansas City to seven straight AFC Championship Games.

It's unclear where Mahomes' desire comes from. Perhaps something he's had from birth or inherited from his professional baseball playing father. Perhaps it was all those years in Lubbock, failing to produce a winning effort despite mind blowing numbers. Perhaps it is to prove all the doubters wrong.

My take is that he plays and he trains as hard as he does to prove his family and supporters right. Mahomes was videotaped working out at the 2022 Pro Bowl, a week after losing the AFC title game to the Bengals. He hasn't lost a playoff game since.

Hate can only fuel a person for so long but a devotion to family lasts forever and that it what gives Kansas City the edge over Philadelphia.