The Kansas City Chiefs might be on their bye week, but that doesn’t mean Patrick Mahomes is off the radar. In fact, while he rests and reflects on the team’s narrow 28–21 loss to the Buffalo Bills, another superstar quarterback is quietly closing in on one of his most elite records.

Mahomes remains the standard — two-time MVP, two-time Super Bowl champion, and the face of modern NFL dominance. Yet as the Chiefs pause at midseason, Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson is positioned to

one-up him statistically. With his 100th career start approaching, Jackson needs just one more game with a passer rating above 100 to join Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers as the only quarterbacks in NFL history to post a 100+ rating through their first 100 starts.

“They’ve got good pass rushers. We have to learn from that fast, and we’ve got to be better as a team offensively,” Mahomes admitted after the Buffalo game — a rare sign of vulnerability from the league’s most confident leader.

For Chiefs fans, the bye week has become less about rest and more about reflection. The offense has looked inconsistent at times, especially under pressure, and the passing attack hasn’t always resembled the fireworks that once defined the Mahomes-Andy Reid era. Yet the standards Mahomes set for himself are precisely why every dip in performance draws attention.

Meanwhile, Jackson’s rise in Baltimore serves as a reminder that greatness in the NFL is constantly being rewritten. Every era has its rivalries, and in this one, Mahomes vs. Jackson is shaping up to be a duel for legacy as much as for stats.

Still, history favors Mahomes. His efficiency, decision-making, and postseason dominance remain unmatched. The Chiefs know that when the lights return after the bye, No. 15 will come back sharper, angrier, and hungrier — ready to remind everyone why the standard still wears red and gold.

Because in Kansas City, being “one-upped” isn’t an option — it’s motivation.

Stay tuned to ESPN!