Bruce Arians Thought Cardinals Would Snag Patrick Mahomes in 2017 Draft

While he was coach in Arizona, he thought “for sure” the team was going to pick him before any other squad could.

In an alternate universe, Bruce Arians and the Cardinals would have selected Patrick Mahomes in the 2017 NFL draft. But in this universe, the Chiefs beat them to it. 

During an appearance on the Pardon My Take podcast, Bruce Arians was asked which quarterback in today’s game would he love to coach. The question made him reminisce on when he and the Cardinals nearly hit the jackpot. 

“I thought for sure when in Arizona we were getting Patrick Mahomes,” Arians said. “As that draft was falling, I was like ‘he’s ours.’” It’s either him or Deshaun (Watson).” 

The Cardinals had the No. 13 pick but Mahomes was selected by the Chiefs at No. 10 and Watson was taken by the Texans at No. 12. Instead, Arizona selected linebacker Haason Reddick, who only stayed with the team for three seasons. 

Patrick Mahomes was ALMOST a Cardinal instead of a Chief, according to @BruceArians.

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— Pardon My Take (@PardonMyTake) August 31, 2022

Arians said Mahomes was the Cardinals’ No. 1 player on the draft board and that he visited Texas Tech to work him out personally, and was blown away. 

“Skill wise, he’s off the chart,” Arians recalled of the workout. “But mentally, he was right there with Peyton (Manning), Andrew (Luck) and Tom (Brady). I mean, he’s like, sharp.” 

Arians would go on to retire from coaching in 2017 before returning in 2019 with the Buccaneers. He and Brady won Super Bowl LV at the end of the 2020 season over Mahomes and Kansas City, but there’s an alternate universe out there where perhaps Mahomes and Arians bring a Lombardi trophy to Arizona. 

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