Mike Pennel urged the Kansas City Chiefs, and fans of the NFL in general, not to take Patrick Mahomes' greatness for granted.
Mahomes has led the Chiefs to four Super Bowl appearances since becoming the starting quarterback in 2018 and is one of just five in his position to win three or more Super Bowls as a starter.
The Chiefs have won the Lombardi Trophy in each of the past two seasons, with Kansas City targetting an unprecedented three-peat in 2024.
And Kansas City defensive tackle Pennel says Mahomes' importance to the Chiefs and the NFL as a while.
Pennel told Stats Perform: "He's very vital to our franchise. I think his play on the field speaks volumes for what type of player he is and how he prepares and how he works hard off the field to have that sustained success in every position.
"He's one of the greatest. He's going to be one of the greatest, and he's preparing himself to be that. He's not sulking in his own success or anything like that. He's still there every day, still does all the little things, even though he has all these accolades, he's still working every single day."
The 33-year-old believes Mahomes possesses many of the qualities that the greats of the sport had before him, and is a true inspiration for the younger players coming through.
He said: "When you have a guy like that on your team that takes no shortcuts, that makes it easy to be a role model for the younger guys, it's just, you're very fortunate. He's a rare guy. He's a lot of the likes of that Tom Brady, Joe Montana type of guy. So, it's a great advantage to have.
"You can't take his greatness for granted. I know as a defense, we're under 13 or less, we want to be a top-rated defense, a top 10 run, top 10 pass, just top 10 overall, so we can complement our team very well."
When asked about what sets Mahomes apart from the rest, Pennel stated his competitive edge and ability to perform on the biggest of stages, which has been integral to the Chiefs winning three of the last five Super Bowls.
He said: "It's his arm talent and he's very decisive. He's very confident in who he is and he goes about that approach every day, he's very, very competitive. I know he hates seeing the punt team out there.
"He feels like he can score on every drive and he wants to do that. So it's just, you know, that competitive edge in him, man, it's just something that's real different. That's gonna take him where he wants to be in this league. And that's why he's in those conversations now being one of the greatest."
When asked about opposing teams attempting to get under Mahomes' skin, Pennel added: "It's just motivation for him, I can't speak too much on why they would do that or why someone would do that or poke the bear, but it's going to make for a great game.
"I think it makes the game fun again, too.I miss the trash talking and going back and forth to how it used to be. It makes it a little fun, makes it a little different, makes the rivalry a little bit more intense. But he'll be excited to prove what he needs to prove on those games."
Giants releasing embattled quarterback Daniel Jones
The Daniel Jones era in New York has officially ended.
The Giants agreed to Jones’ request to be released Friday morning, ending a rocky partnership that lasted nearly six seasons.
Giants president John Mara said in a statement that Jones’ release “would be best for him and for the team.”
“Daniel has been a great representative of our organisation, first class in every way,” Mara said in the statement. “His handling of this situation yesterday exemplifies just that. We are all disappointed in how things have worked out.”
The Giants benched Jones in favour of Tommy DeVito during their bye week. On Thursday, Jones told reporters he takes “full responsibility” for not winning more as the captain of one of the NFL’s signature franchises.
After learning of his new role, however, Jones asked the team to be released.
Jones signed a four-year, $160million contract extension before the 2023 season. Jones will go through the waivers process, but teams are likely unwilling to pay the rest of that contract. If he clears waivers, he will become an unrestricted free agent.
The Giants will absorb a salary cap hit of around $20million by releasing Jones.
Jones was the sixth overall pick in the 2019 draft and has started 69 games over the last six seasons.
The former Duke quarterback had his best season in a contract year in 2022, throwing 15 touchdowns to just five interceptions and adding 708 yards and seven scores on the ground.
Jones has thrown eight touchdown passes and seven interceptions this season for the 2-8 Giants and ranks 32nd among qualified quarterbacks with a 79.4 passer rating.
Browns score late touchdown to end Steelers' streak in snowy contest
Nick Chubb ran for a 2-yard touchdown in heavy snow with 57 seconds left, and the Cleveland Browns stunned division rival Pittsburgh 24-19 on Thursday night, ending the Steelers' five-game winning streak.
Chubb's score came in his first game against the AFC North-leading Steelers (8-3) since the running back sustained a season-ending left knee injury on a carry last year at Pittsburgh.
The Browns (3-8) had blown a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter and were down 19-18 before getting the ball back with 3:22 remaining after Pittsburgh punter Corliss Waitman shanked a 16-yarder.
With snow piling up and covering the yard lines on the field, Cleveland's Jameis Winston completed a third-down pass to Jerry Jeudy to the Pittsburgh 9. Two plays later, Chubb barrelled into the end zone.
The Steelers had one last chance, but quarterback Russell Wilson's Hail Mary on the final play was knocked down by Browns safety Grant Delpit in the end zone, touching off a wild celebration at Huntington Bank Field.
NFL: Texans bounce back, extend Cowboys' woes
Joe Mixon's 109 rushing yards and three touchdowns helped get the Houston Texans back on track with Monday's 34-10 win over the floundering Dallas Cowboys.
Houston (7-4) snapped a two-game losing streak behind Mixon's powerful running and a defence that sacked Cowboys' fill-in quarterback Cooper Rush five times and forced two turnovers, including a fumble Derek Barnett returned 28 yards for a touchdown that gave the Texans a 27-10 lead in the fourth quarter.
Dallas (3-7) has now lost five straight, its longest skid since dropping seven in a row in 2015, and fell to 0-5 at home. The Cowboys have been outscored by 118 points (187-69) at AT&T Stadium, the third-largest negative differential through five home games in a season in NFL history.
Rush did throw a 64-yard touchdown pass to KaVontae Turpin in his second straight start subbing for an injured Dak Prescott, and finished with a career-high 354 passing yards with one interception while completing 32 of 55 attempts.
C.J. Stroud threw for 257 yards with an interception for Houston, which extended its lead over the second-place Indianapolis Colts to two games in the AFC South.
The Texans never trailed after Mixon ripped off a 45-yard touchdown run on the game's opening drive, and the veteran running back added a 1-yard scoring plunge late in the first quarter to give Houston a 14-0 lead.
Turpin got Dallas on the board by taking a short pass from Rush and breaking free from the Houston defence nine seconds into the second quarter, but the Cowboys were shut out in the second half after pulling to within 17-10 on Brandon Aubrey's 53-yard field goal with just under six minutes left before half-time.
Burnett's strip sack of Rush and return of the resulting fumble helped put the game away with 12:31 left, and Mixon tacked on his final touchdown of the night with 3:16 remaining to cap a 35-yard drive that began after the Texans stopped the Cowboys on downs.
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