Before  Patrick Mahomes became the face of the NFL, he was a rookie learning the ropes, on the field and off. Behind the scenes, it was a crash course in professionalism, led by veteran Alex Smith. Their bond was more than football, as Mahomes didn’t just study Smith’s game-day habits; he absorbed everything, from locker room leadership to late-night dinners. And, his biggest rookie struggle wasn’t reading NFL defenses, it was figuring out steakhouse etiquette. However, Patrick Mahomes almost lost all credibility at a steakhouse… until Alex Smith stepped in with a life-saving forkful of wisdom.

On the Glue Guys Podcast, Smith revealed how he mentored Mahomes not just on the grind of being an NFL QB—“on the ups & downs, off-season, Mondays after a tough loss, Mondays after a big Saturday night prepping for a big game”—but also on the finer points of grown-up dining. One such lesson? “Stop putting ketchup on your steak. This is a nice steakhouse, we don’t have to drink Coors Light, Patrick.” Smith wasn’t just coaching a future MVP; he was saving him from total culinary humiliation.

The now-viral anecdote, shared by Starcade Media on X, is a part of Chiefs’ lore. Mahomes, known early on for his love of ketchup on everything, got a lesson on how to eat steaks. And as Chiefs fans know, his rise from “Coors Light rookie” to multi-ring superstar didn’t happen by chance. Sometimes, mentorship means leading two-minute drills; other times, it is stopping a young phenom from ruining a filet with condiments.

Kansas City’s QB1 is so unapologetically himself that he has sparked condiment chaos across the NFL, just by asking for ketchup. As a kid, Mahomes straight-up ate ketchup sandwiches. “Just bread and ketchup,” he told Pardon My Take: no meat, no cheese, just ketchup. And when ESPN asked, Mahomes remarked, “I put it on my macaroni and cheese… People seem to think that’s disgusting, but it’s good to me.” You can’t coach that kind of commitment.

But this ketchup love wasn’t just a quirky trait; it became a full-blown marketing brand. Hunt’s Ketchup saw the buzz and signed him up. Mahomes didn’t blink: “I’ve been a fan of ketchup for as long as I can remember, and the thick, rich flavor of Hunt’s delivers every time.” He even admitted on KCSP 610 Radio that he throws ketchup on Thanksgiving turkey and ham. And, when the host asked if he was kidding, Mahomes replied, “Come on, you know me better than that.” And, truly, his love for ketchup surpasses all, except for the brotherhood that he maintains in the league.

Alex Smith and Patrick Mahomes’ bonding

When Patrick Mahomes entered the NFL in 2017, he didn’t just walk into a quarterback room. He walked into a masterclass on professionalism. Smith, already a 13-year vet, didn’t have to take the rookie under his wing. But Mahomes beat him to the building most mornings anyway. “At this point, I was so dialed into my preparation… and Patrick was just glued to that quarterback room, to everywhere I went,” Smith recalled. And, Mahomes began to shadow Smith through film, meetings, recovery sessions, and learning what it meant to be the guy before he became the guy.

The bond went beyond football. Every Thursday, the quarterbacks had “QB Dinners,” a tradition Smith upheld that became a rite of passage for Mahomes. “It was always just QB Dinner. Said it all. It was a way to bond,” Smith said, laughing as he remembered Mahomes’ rookie quirks, that is, “his affinity for Coors Light, ketchup, and Cool Ranch Doritos.” Such instances gave Mahomes a safe space to grow.

Smith never showed resentment. In fact, when Mahomes won his first Super Bowl, Smith reached out, saying, “He texted me right after the game, saying he enjoyed it just as much as we did. He wasn’t there, but he was part of it.” Even years later, Mahomes hasn’t stopped calling Smith’s influence foundational. “He helped me learn how to become a professional quarterback,” he told ESPN. “I had to teach the culture that we have here, that I learned from Alex Smith.” Head coach Andy Reid said it best, remarking, “Alex by nature was the greatest thing that ever happened to Patrick Mahomes.” Smith gave Mahomes a year to absorb greatness. And, as we know, Mahomes took it and launched himself like no other. The record books are in front of us!