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The Childhood Drill That Helped Pat Mahomes Build Superhuman Arm Strength

By www.stack.com, 10/19/18, 8:00AM CDT

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On a handful of passing attempts each game, Patrick Mahomes seemingly shreds the laws of physics.

When a quarterback drops back to throw, their brain must process an incredible amount of information in mere seconds. They must calculate the velocity of their receiver, the size of their target, their location on the field in relation to themselves, and then do the same for every defensive player in the vicinity of the potential passing lane. Then, they have to estimate how their own arm strength and accuracy factors into the equation. Once they crunch the calculus, they must choose one of two options—should I make this throw, or not?

What makes the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback so special is that he routinely answers "yes" to passing attempts for which there's nearly no precedent, then executes them with a magical flick of the wrist. The amount of zip and power Mahomes possesses allows him to make throws other quarterbacks wouldn't attempt in their wildest dreams. It unlocks a dimension of throwing lanes few have previously explored:

He discussed that very topic with STACK for our 2017 Path to the Pros series.

"(I think it has to do) with just the fact that I've long-tossed since I was 5 years old. My dad, me and him would always work on long-tossing back and forth. So me doing that all the time, it just built arm strength," Mahomes said.

 Mahomes' father was a professional baseball pitcher who spent 11 years in the MLB, so Patrick naturally grew up dreaming of following his footsteps. "Long toss" is a baseball drill that entails throwing the ball over a distance greater than you would typically encounter during game action. The exact distance depends on your physical maturity and skill level, but when implemented smartly and progressively, long toss is widely regarded as an excellent way to build arm strength and shoulder durability. 

But baseball didn't just help Mahomes build his Howitzer-like arm strength—it also helped him develop an ability to deliver passes on the move and from a wide variety of arm angles. Mahomes spent much of his baseball career as a shortstop, a position where the player is often forced to rifle throws from awkward, unorthodox body positions. Just as a shortstop cannot always take the time to set their feet and deliver a "standard" throw if they want to beat a baserunner, quarterbacks are also often forced to improvise passes before a window slams shut. 

"I think a lot of it is from baseball and how I could sling the ball across the diamond. I played shortstop my whole life. I never had my feet under me. I was always making throws across my body," Mahomes told Texas Footballmagazine in 2016. 

In addition to Mahomes, quarterbacks like Dan Marino, John Elway, Tom Brady and Russell Wilson have also stated that their amateur baseball careers played a role in their success as signal callers. Read more about the strong connection between a background in baseball and elite quarterbacks here