Sean Payton had strong flashbacks going into the 2024 NFL draft when he used the Broncos’ No.12 overall draft pick to select QB Bo Nix out of the Oregon Ducks. Although Payton had a strong eye for the QB, he went through a similar situation a few years back during the 2017 NFL draft.

Back then, Patrick Mahomes was the hottest prospect, and the QB was almost certain to be picked by the New Orleans Saints under Payton. But before Payton could move ahead with his plan for the No.11 overall draft pick, the Chiefs got their man, and the rest is history. Finding himself in a similar position, the Broncos HC shared the secret sauce that allowed him to get Nix ahead of other teams. In an interview with Dianna Russini of the Athletic, Payton stated, “Well, I know this. There were few other teams that saw it the same way. We stopped the tape, and I said, George, I’m just going to say this. We’re not the only ones seeing it this way.”

Well, Payton also issued a warning to the Broncos GM George Paton while trying to simulate the situation, “We felt the Giants were going to be an at large team, not necessarily for Bo, but for quarterback. Are they taking one or not? And then they didn’t.” Even though the Broncos HC did consider the Giants in contention for Nix, they ended up picking Malik Nabers as their 6th overall pick.

But he didn’t stop there as Payton continued, “The Jets are still on the clock. And I said to George, Call the Jets, Just call them. We don’t want to move up unnecessarily a pick or two.” Looking back, the Jets did go for an 11th overall draft pick, but the name on the shirt was Penn State tackle Olu Fashanu. 

Finally, Payton had the Las Vegas Raiders on his radar, to which he said, “Then it was like, call the Raiders, tell them we might want to move back to see if… so there was this. They didn’t want to move up. And then, there’s that, you know, minute you wait, and we’ll stay put, and the jets make their pick, and then here we are.” In the end, it all worked out as Payton got his man, and the Broncos got a valuable player who had a stellar season last year at Oregon. With 8,101 yards, 74 TDs, and just 10 interceptions over two seasons, multiple teams might have had their eye on Nix.

However, not repeating the mistake that cost him Mahomes with just one slot back in 2017. Payton managed to secure the rookie QB while adding him to a roster consisting of Jarrett Stidham, Ben DiNucci, and Zach Wilson, all fighting for their spots. But how did Mahomes land at Arrowhead Stadium with multiple teams lurking behind?

Patrick Mahomes road to Kansas City Chiefs

Opening up on a podcast hosted by Travis Kelce and his brother Jason Kelce,the three-time Super Bowl winner expressed, “As the process went on, I got a feeling that I was going up in the draft. I had a couple of teams that said they were gonna draft me, and that’s true.” However, the Chiefs’ QB had his eyes set on the place he wanted to land.

Therefore, taking matters into his hands, Mahomes rang the Chiefs and said, “Hey, if y’ll let me go 12 or below, I’m gonna get drafted by someone else.” And the Chiefs took his warning seriously while trading their No. 27 and 91 picks alongside a 2018 first-round pick with the Bills for future NFL MVP.

But there is more to the Mahomes story, as then- Chief’s’ OC, Matt Nagy, also had a role to play. Continuing on the podcast, Mahomes added how Nagy liked him before he first went to the Kansas City facility to meet coach Andy Reid. Providing us with an inside scoop, the QB stated, “he gave me the plays that were gonna go over the night before. So, of course, I crushed the meeting. I stayed up all night studying those plays.”

Well, what happened after that is history, as we all know. Mahomes went on to win three Super Bowls with Chiefs. But can he continue his good run by securing the historical three-peat for the Kansas City Chiefs?