Sep 28, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) throws a pass during the first quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Steelers Gave Chiefs Answer on Patrick Mahomes

Originally posted on Pittsburgh Steelers on SI
By Jack Markowski | Last updated Oct 2, 2025 11:00 AM ET

It didn't take long for Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt to realize his team had something special at quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, with a performance against the Pittsburgh Steelers at the start of his career standing out as a true eye-opener.

"The following week, we went to Pittsburgh, a place that we had a lot of difficulty getting a victory," Hunt said on FS1's "First Things First". "And that game was effectively over by halftime. I think he and [Travis] Kelce connected for three or so touchdowns. We couldn't believe it, it was so special."

Patrick Mahomes Era Began Against Steelers

Mahomes sat behind Alex Smith as a rookie after being selected in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft and thus didn't get a chance to be Kansas City's full-time starter until the 2018 campaign.

Expectations for him were all over the board, but evidently his showing in Pittsburgh really sold the Chiefs on the idea that he was their future behind center.

Facing the Steelers in Week 2 that season, Mahomes threw for six touchdowns and 326 yards with an absurd 82.1 percent completion rate as Kansas City defeated Pittsburgh by a score of 42-37.

Philip G. Pavely-Imagn Images

The contest wasn't over at halftime as Hunt insinuated, with the score being tied 21-21 at that point, but the Steelers had no answer for Mahomes that day.

Steelers Historic Loss

Leading into that game, the Chiefs hadn't beaten Pittsburgh on the road since 1986. Mahomes did so in the first try of his career, however, and he later took down the Steelers at Acrisure Stadium on Christmas Day in 2024 while also being a perfect 4-0 against them, including the playoffs.

Pittsburgh has yet to truly figure out how to slow down Mahomes, who has dominated the AFC and NFL as a whole for the better part of a decade.

The Steelers haven't quite presented the same threat in the conference to Mahomes as they did to the likes of Tom Brady and Peyton Manning throughout the 2000s and most of the 2010s, meaning there hasn't been much of a rivalry present.

Regardless, Mahomes has owned Pittsburgh in their four meetings against one another, and his dominant run in the league essentially began on the North Shore seven years ago.

This article first appeared on Pittsburgh Steelers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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