Quarterback Patrick Mahomes, football’s most valuable player, will begin searching for his fourth trip to the Super Bowl in five seasons when the NFL’s 104th season kicks off Thursday.
Mahomes, the 27-year-old guard who led Kansas City to their second Super Bowl title in four seasons last February, will lead the Chiefs against the Detroit Lions in Game 1.
His mission is to lead Kansas City to the Conference Finals for the sixth straight season in hopes of qualifying for Super Bowl 58 in Las Vegas on February 11, 2024.
Most NFL clubs will start the season on Sunday, and on Monday the Buffalo will visit the New York Jets, now run by four-time NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
A motivated Mahomes remarked, “I think I always have this resentment. Rather, I realize how lucky I am to be here. us, that window was very large.”
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The Chiefs were left without a key player in their defensive division as Chris Jones’ contract expired in hopes of a better deal.
Jones, 29, had a career-high 44 tackles and a career-high 15.5 sacks starting every game in his seventh season in the NFL, all with Kansas City.
“He’s the best defenseman in the league,” said Chiefs tight end Travis Kelsey. “He deserves all the money in the world.”
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Kelsey, Mahomes’ top receiver, caught 110 passes for 1,338 yards and 12 touchdowns last season.
While the Chiefs remain at the top, no club has won consecutive Super Bowls since Tom Brady led the New England Patriots to NFL championships in 2004 and 2005.
But the first season since 1999 sees the legendary Brady absent, having retired after a record seven Super Bowl titles.
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There are plenty of other clubs looking to take the throne, including the Jets, who will be joined in April by 39-year-old Green Bay’s Rodgers.
“I think we have a legitimate opportunity to do this,” Rogers said. “I think we’re one of those teams.”
He will lead a club rebuilt to win now, but one that hasn’t won a Super Bowl since 1969 or made the playoffs since 2010.
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Rogers says chemistry is just as important as talent. “This team has a lot of talent,” Rodgers said. “Let’s see if this other part can handle it.”
The Eagles, led by quarterback Jalen Herts, lost to Kansas City in the Super Bowl seven months ago but are also expected to face San Francisco, Josh Allen’s Buffalo Bills and the Cincinnati Bengals. who were left without Joe Burrow throughout the season. nearly six weeks of training due to a calf injury.
Detroit comes to Kansas City on Thursday hoping to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and win a playoff game for the first time since the 1991 postseason.
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Last season, the Lions won eight of their last 10 games 9–8, their best season in five years.
Jared Goff, who was a quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams until the 2019 Super Bowl, is returning to lead the charge after passing for 4,438 yards and 29 touchdowns last season.
For its part, Baltimore signed a five-year, $260 million extension for quarterback Lamar Jackson and spent $15 million on three-time All-Star wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who last played in the 2022 Super Bowl when his second ligament broke. tears on the knee
If the two work well together, the Ravens will be able to fly high.
“I’m surrounded by a great group of guys and now I feel like it’s time to step up,” Jackson said.
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