Patrick Mahomes reveals why he rejected Travis Kelce-esque opportunity to host SNL
Patrick Mahomes is a three-time Super Bowl winning quarterback and at 28-years old already has quite the resume. While Mahomes makes clutch plays for the Kansas City Chiefs, he looks fearless. However, he recently revealed what his kryptonite is: teleprompters.
Mahomes sat down with Time Magazine's Sean Gregory for an in-depth look into the quarterback's life on and off the field. When asked whether he would consider hosting NBC's iconic late-night show as his teammate, Travis Kelce did, Mahomes refused.
Patrick Mahomes blames an incident with a teleprompter at the annual ESPY Awards for his hesitation.
Mahomes has ambitions beyond football too. He wants, for example, to host Saturday Night Live before he’s done. The show inquired about his interest after this season, he says, but he doesn’t think he’s ready. He’s still scarred from a bad experience at the ESPYs a few years ago. “I have a little bit of a fear with the teleprompter,” Mahomes said. And the SNL monologue especially involves reading a script, though the show uses cue cards rather than electronics. Lorne Michaels might want to try again next year.
He's leaving the door open though for a future SNL hosting gig, saying that it's definitely something he would like to try his hand at.
Patrick Mahomes identifies moment when he gave up MLB dreams for the NFL
Throughout his childhood and into high school, quarterback Patrick Mahomes was a dual-sport athlete. He played baseball just like his dad, Pat Mahomes Sr., a former MLB pitcher. He also loved football which led him to a college scholarship at Texas Tech.
The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback originally planned to play football and baseball for the Red Raiders and then re-enter the MLB draft after graduation. His college coach, Kliff Kingsbury, told Mahomes that the toll of playing two sports appeared to be too much and gave him some advice. His former head coach believed that he could be a first-round draft pick in the NFL if he gave it more focus. Mahomes was all in:
“I was like, ‘Let’s do it. I want to see where this takes me." - via Time Magazine
The Kansas City Chiefs believed he was a first-round draft pick too. The team made a trade with the Buffalo Bills to move up to pick number 10 in order to draft the quarterback.