KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Patrick Mahomes took the podium at training camp Friday and was asked about the criticism leveled at Arizona Cardinals QB Kyler Murray over his now removed contract addendum that required independent study hours each week.
Mahomes was asked by KSHB Kansas City's Aaron Ladd if he feels he's evaluated differently because he's a Black quarterback. Mahomes said he didn't want to take it that far, but he did speak candidly about the criticism he and fellow star Black QBs Lamar Jackson and Kyler Murray face.
"Obviously, the Black quarterback has had to battle to be in this position that we are to have this many guys in the league playing,'' Mahomes said. "Every day, we're proving that we should have been playing the whole time. We've got guys that can think just as well as they can use their athleticism. It's always weird when you see guys like me, Lamar [Jackson], Kyler kind of get that on them when other guys don't. But at the same time we're going out there to prove ourselves every day to show we can be some of the best quarterbacks in the league.''
Mahomes went on to acknowledge that he still feels he has plenty to prove.
"You always feel like you have more to prove,'' he said. "I promise Tom Brady is feeling like he has more to prove. That comes with any sport, any competitor. If you're not getting better, you're getting worse. They build you up to tear you down. You've got to kind of know that. For me, it's all about how I can make myself better, not what other people say. How can I make myself better so that we go out there and play football games? At the end of the day nothing matters until you're on that football field playing and that's where you get to prove who you are every single day.''
Kyler Murray recently signed a contract that required him to study game material on his own for four hours per week. Murray spoke out on Thursday calling it disrespectful that people don't think he's a student of the game. The Cardinals, that day, removed that requirement from his contract after the distractions that came out of it.