The Kansas City Chiefs will head into next season as the reigning Super Bowl champs. A late overtime Patrick Mahomes touchdown pass to Mecole Hardman propelled the Chiefs to a thrilling 25-22 win over the San Francisco 49ers. Hardman, who finished the game with three catches for 57 yards and a score, started the season with the New York Jets after spending four years with Kansas City before his eventual return following a mid-October trade. Four months later, Hardman proved invaluable for the Chiefs, making one of the biggest catches in franchise history on the sport’s biggest stage. On Tuesday, the now-three-time Super Bowl champ opened up on his time with the Jets while on The Pivot Podcast.
Kansas City Chiefs WR Mecole Hardman: ‘I Was So Checked Out, Like, It Was Over With’
Kansas City Chiefs wideout Mecole Hardman spoke on The Pivot Podcast on Tuesday, talking about his short half-season tenure with the New York Jets. He did not mince words when discussing his disdain for the organization.
“I was so checked out, like, it was over with. I had already talked to (KC GM Brett) Veach and Pat (Mahomes), like, ‘Come get me,'” said Hardman. The former All-Pro took issue with the AFC East club early in the season when they asked him to take on punt return duties. Hardman states he was dealing with his own injury at the time. Additionally, the wideout felt misled by special teams coach Brant Boyer during training camp, specifically revolving around his potential returning duties. Jets head coach Robert Saleh tried to convince Hardman to become a late fill-in for starting punt returner Xavier Gipson, but he declined due to his strained relationship with Boyer.
Former Jets WR/Super Bowl hero Mecole Hardman, appearing on @Realrclark25's Pivot podcast, shed some light on what led to his trade from the Jets. For instance:
* Hardman said he refused to return punts vs KC because he felt STC Brant Boyer had misled him about the…
— Rich Cimini (@RichCimini) February 27, 2024
Hardman continued, “It’s the lies and how they handled me. I didn’t like it at all.” Hardman emphasizes that he felt misled by the organization as a special team and offensive asset. He also spoke on the culture within the New York Jets organization and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett.
“You just got a new (offensive) coaching staff that came in, and there’s no standard there. Everybody does what they (players) want to do. Granted, the defense has more of a stabilized standard with the coaching staff on that side, so the defense has a standard. But the offense is just like, ‘We’ll just figure it out. It’s Aaron’s show. Let Aaron do what Aaron does.’ Then, when Aaron goes down, it’s like we don’t know what to do.”
Hardman: Effective with Little Production Last Season
Mecole Hardman finished the year with 15 catches for 124 yards and no scores across 11 games. He had all but one of his catches with the Chiefs. The Georgia product also returned seven punts for 61 yards. He saw little production in the playoffs but saved his best performance for the Super Bowl. He entered the season finale with two playoff receptions for five yards but tallied three catches for 57 yards and the game-winning touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers.
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