New Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes logged plenty of firsts after getting picked 10th overall by Kansas City on Thursday night.
He was the first Texas Tech quarterback to come off the board in the top 100 since 1989, when the Chargers picked Billy Joe Tolliver in the second round. He's also the first Red Raiders first-round pick since Michael Crabtree in 2009.
But even more a rarity, he's the first quarterback drafted in the first round by an Andy Reid-led team since Donovan McNabb in 1999.
"I knew there was a chance but for this to actually happen, you never expect it," Mahomes said on NFL Total Access after being drafted. "You want to be drafted high but to be drafted high into an organization like the Kansas City Chiefs, it's like a dream to me."
In this case, Mahomes is fine with sitting behind Alex Smith should that be the case.
"Yeah it's going to be awesome getting to learn from a guy like Alex Smith, who's had a ton of success in the league. I'm just going to get in there, work as hard as I can, learn from him, learn from everyone in the organization and the team and be ready to go when the opportunity presents itself."
Interestingly enough, the only person who this experience doesn't feel new or rare to is Smith. After getting jettisoned for another young, cannon-armed quarterback in San Francisco a few years ago, the NFL circle of life is coming for him once again. Smith, who is 32, has two more years left on his deal and is coming off his second Pro Bowl appearance. Perhaps Reid favors a Packers-style quarterback ascension plan, which he was a part of as a Green Bay assistant in the early 1990s.
But it's understandable if Smith feels a little on guard. How motivated will he be to tutor another up-and-comer?
Watch the NFL Draft LIVE tonight at 7 ET on NFL Network
