Long before Taylor Swift was affiliated with the Kansas City Chiefs, NFL Network’s Peter Schrager had a “Love Story” of his own with the organization. In 2018, before Patrick Mahomes became the starting quarterback for the Chiefs Schrager, the co-host of Good Morning Football, predicted that he would become a breakout player. On Friday, Schrager shared a clip from six years ago, in which he expressed his admiration for the now two-time NFL MVP and Super Bowl Champion.
“I’m not taking the @Chiefs this weekend because I’ve always taken the Chiefs in the past. I’m taking the Chiefs because I still believe.”
– @PSchrags with a passionate take to the “underdog” defending champions. pic.twitter.com/YqIU3f0VXV
— Good Morning Football (@gmfb) January 19, 2024
“He played one game against the Broncos in the final regular season game of the previous season, and yet, all summer, there had been such buzz about Mahomes,” Schrager said. “I put my name and my chips in the middle of the table and said, ‘I’m going to ride this Mahomes trade.’ Yet, the Schrager-Chiefs ‘Love Story’ would continue on and it became more than just about the quarterback.
“I fell for everything this city had going on. I wore a Daniel Sorensen jersey on air. I donned a L’Jarius Sneed jersey long before he was an angry runs champion — when he was a rookie. And I had cocktail shrimp and horseradish at St. Elmo’s with Andy Reid at the Combine; shoutout to Ted Crews, who’s right across the table. Yeah, the PR guy from the Chiefs and I hanging out at the biggest tables and enjoying the hottest of horseradish sauce.”
Schrager, originally a New Jersey native and New York Giants fan, was somehow adopted by the Kansas City fanbase despite not being a Chiefs fan growing up. And here he is, picking the Chiefs to win the AFC every single season. Since ’18, the Chiefs have represented the AFC three times (winning twice), so it’s not like it should be viewed as this homerism from Schrager, despite his newfound allegiances to the most populous city in Missouri.
“They have made me look very, very, very smart,” Schrager said of the Chiefs. “Back in September, I was thinking it might be time to change it up. Maybe it’s the year I go a different way. And when I had to make the pick, I remember lying in my bed the night before the show and saying, ‘Can I really go against Kansas City?”
Schrager woke up the next morning and predicted that the Chiefs would “yet again” be Super Bowl champions. Mind you, that was before Travis Kelce was dating the biggest pop star in the world and Kansas City was being held down by its lackluster wide receiver play.
“You see, now they’re the underdogs,” he added. “They’re on the road for the first time, and trust me, I love Josh Allen, and I love the Bills, and I love their fanbase. This isn’t against Buffalo. If anything, it’s pro-Kansas City; it’s pro-loyalty, it’s pro-dancing with the one you came with. You see if I got off the bandwagon now, I would be a fraud; I would be a quitter. Hell, even if they beat the Buffalo Bills this weekend, guys, I’m taking the Chiefs next week against Baltimore.
“I cannot pick against Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid and Travis Kelce and Brett Veach and Steve Spagnuolo and Chris Jones, and you name any player or person involved with this team during this long, incredible ride. I can’t, in good faith, stand up here again with you, the audience, and pick against them. And it’s not because I want to be right and I want to show old clips. I can’t because I still believe in them.
“Chiefs fans, I get it; it may seem different this year. Things might not be as sizzling as they once were. But you’re gonna have to find a different person on a different network on a different television if you think I’m picking against the logo right here. I got the Chiefs winning on Sunday and it’s not with hubris, or arrogance, or (Pro Football Focus) numbers, or NextGenStats from Amazon; it’s with my gut.
“It’s because I’m dancing with the guys that got me here. And Taylor Swift, I’m down with what you’ve brought to the game. I appreciate you. I like having you a part of this (inaudible), and I really dug at the Swag Surf. But you might need to hold off preparing for that World Tour in February because I don’t think this Chiefs’ season is finishing when everyone else does.”
Schrager, who has been steadfast in his support for the Chiefs, remains unwavering in his prediction – Kansas City is not done yet, and he sees them winning on Sunday. The season’s journey is still unfolding, and for Schrager, the Chiefs are the ones to bet on until the very end.
