Patrick Mahomes says he hears Andy Reid’s voice in his head during games

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback and MVP favorite Patrick Mahomes joined The Rich Eisen Show on Tuesday to discuss a number of items. It’s a fantastic 12-minute interview, which you may find in its entirety here.

Being one of the lead journalists on NFL Network, Eisen first wanted to know about what head coach Andy Reid means to him in his first year as a starter.

“We have a great relationship,” Mahomes said. “I feel like we’re always on the same page. He explains things to me so well that I really understand it and can be comfortable out there on the field. When we get out there and we’re together on the bench ... we go over the last drive, we go over the things we want to do to try to exploit what the defense is doing and we just go over the plays that are coming up next.”

Upon hearing that, Eisen asked Mahomes for a specific example.

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

“Being able to know the coverages that the defense can throw at you—where the ball needs to go, how you need to get through your read,” Mahomes answered. “I feel like with that, it makes me feel so much more comfortable in the pocket.”

Then Mahomes revealed that Reid has him so prepared, he hears his head coach’s voice during the course of a game.

“I can recognize the coverage based on the film study from the week,” Mahomes said. “Then at some point you hear that little voice in your head of coach Reid talking to me, telling me if they play this coverage, we need to go through these reads versus if they play the other one.

“Just having that, it makes it so that I can play fast on the field, go out there and get the ball out of my hand and make plays.”

With three more passing touchdowns on Sunday, Mahomes has 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions on the year, a stat line that has him leading the MVP race.

Eisen wanted to know which of Mahomes’ 29 touchdowns was his favorite, and as it turned out, it was one of the two touchdown passes he threw to tight end Travis Kelce this week.

“I just kind of put it up there and he made a great catch on it,” Mahomes said. “I told Kelc, he catches that for a touchdown and it looks good, but if he doesn’t make that play on it, that DB makes the play, it’s an interception, so it just shows you the small line that you have of being touchdowns or interceptions in this league.”

Eisen later asked Mahomes if he thinks about the single-season touchdown record set by former Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning at 55 back in 2013. At this pace, Mahomes will be in line to challenge the record.

Mahomes answered with a bit of perspective.

“I haven’t thought about it really at all,” he said. “I remember being at Texas Tech. I had a ton of stats where I put a ton of numbers up and we just didn’t win football games.”

Mahomes actually finished college with a losing record at 13-16.

“I really thought after I left there I was like, ‘I don’t care about the stats. I don’t care about any of that stuff. I just want to win,’ and I feel like that’s the best you can have is just winning games, and so for me, all the stats, they kind of come with the job I guess you would say and having this team around me, but whatever way we can find ways to win games, I feel like that’s the best you can have.”

Eisen told Mahomes that no matter which Chiefs fan he talks to, he or she always brings up how excited they are about how he’s performing in Kansas City. Eisen wanted to know if he had felt that fame in Kansas City.

“It’s crazy to me,” Mahomes said. “I might have my hood on at a gas station, and they just recognize me immediately when I hop out and I pump my gas, so that just shows you how much these fans are truly paying attention, how much this Chiefs Kingdom really believes and loves the Chiefs.”

The two discuss Mahomes Showtime nickname, his earliest sports memory and more in a great interview by Eisen, which you can find here. The Rich Eisen Show is available on AUDIENCE Network -DIRECTV CH. 239.