Netflix "Quarterback" series

[odanny]

I have not watched it, but read some reviews on it. Probably won't watch it, here is a synopsis.

Episode 1 — The Quest​

Longtime fans of Formula 1 racing probably spaced out during parts of “Drive to Survive” and in-the-weeds NFL fans probably will do the same during “Quarterback.” The show is meant to be accessible to people who have well-rounded and fulfilling lives instead of just football fans, so Episode 1 spends a lot of time establishing who these people are.

It also starts to slot them into their archetypes. Mahomes is the superstar. Cousins is the journeyman (You have to suspend a little disbelief to think of a dude with Scrooge McDuck’s bank account as a journeyman, but you know what you signed up for.) Mariota is the guy down to his last dollar.

Our first introduction to Mariota comes when he and his wife, Kiyomi, visit an office to see a 3D ultrasound of their first child. Right away, the show starts leaning heavily into Mariota’s “fresh start” narrative.

If you followed the 2022 season, you know what’s coming. If you didn’t, well, guard your heart a little.

Episode 2 — Homecoming​

Throughout the series, we get little glimpses of the good life afforded to NFL quarterbacks — great houses, private jets, nice cars, etc. — there is no moment in the series that screams “baller” louder than in Episode 2 when the Mahomes family visits the Fun Farm or at least what appears through careful forensic analysis to be the Fun Farm — a fall festival, family fun farm in Kearney, Mo., just outside Kansas City.

Anyone who has visited one of these human ant farms on a pretty day in the fall will immediately notice that the site is shut down for Mahomes’ visit. Do you have any idea how much of a superstar you have to be to get the full VIP package at the Fun Farm? No crowds. No lines. No tripping over other people’s children. This will be my lasting memory from the entire series.

From a football perspective, the most interesting part of this episode is Mahomes’ personal trainer Bobby Stroupe (who he has been working with Mahomes since the fourth grade) comparing the quarterback to an owl. It kind of makes sense and will change the way you watch Mahomes play.

Cousins revisits the “You like that?!” game and takes a tour of the “memory room” in his house, and the Mariota thread continues by highlighting the thin line between success and failure, particularly for a player who acknowledges that his confidence has ebbed and flowed throughout his career.

Episode 3 — Kings of Pain​

For the first time in the series, we get to see a truly dark side of one of the protagonists.

“I’m a big McDonald’s guy,” Mariota acknowledges while talking with his personal chef about his efforts to keep his body in shape.

Mariota still indulges himself with breakfast at the golden arches on Mondays, but this episode details the lengths the three men go to to stay healthy playing what can be a physically grueling position.

We get to see Cousins getting pummeled by the Bills and acknowledging that the beating affects the way he plays and Mahomes calling himself “a compliment guy” in an effort to make defensive players like him a little more.

“I feel like if those guys like me, they won’t finish (the hits) as hard,” he said.

Oh, and Mahomes hints a different hairstyle is coming.

“I would have done it this year, but (sponsor) Head & Shoulders would have been mad,” he said. “I can’t have two kids and a mohawk.”

Episode 4 — Mind Games​

This is the episode for football diehards. Probably the most interesting 60 seconds of the series is Mahomes breaking down his pre-snap thought process while watching one play of the Chargers defense against the Rams. Eight episodes of this would be much-see TV for the sickos, but Netflix would lose 90 percent of the audience after 90 seconds of it.

Mahomes also details the Chiefs’ system for naming their play calls.

“We had one that was ‘Phone Home’ one time for Sammy Watkins because he was big into aliens,” Mahomes says.

We get to see Cousins training his brain using a headband and cap that measure his neural activity, and Mariota’s wife, formerly a soccer player at Oregon, quizzing him on play calls in what is a weekly habit in their house.

This episode really builds on the Mariota storyline. Here’s a really likable guy who has owned his ups and downs with humility and look how great he played in a win over the 49ers. Don’t fall for it. They’re just setting you up to be hurt.

Episode 5 — Roller Coaster​

When Mahomes says “it’s crazy how seven points is so much different than three points,” every offensive coordinator watching at home will slap his coffee table and scream, “Thank you,” but that’s about all the Patrick we get in this episode.

This is The One Where It Doesn’t Work Out For Marcus. We see Mariota and Kiyomi assembling a crib for their daughter. The takeaway is supposed to be: See what an everyman this guy is. The actual takeaway is: Someone has to get this man a tool set because he’s using a tiny little multitool to do it all.

We also see the Mariotas working with their charity foundation and visiting a children’s hospital and Marcus throwing three touchdowns in a wild win over the Panthers on his 29th birthday. Then comes a stretch in which Mariota’s play dips significantly and the Falcons lose four of five games.

“Yes, it sucks to lose. Yes, you feel like you’re letting a bunch of people down,” he says. “You really go kind of in a dark place.”

We get to see a couple of angles of Mariota throwing a pass from his back in the season’s second game against the Panthers. It is not a good look.

“At that point in time, there was a little bit of a lull offensively,” he says. “My natural instinct has always been that I’m the guy that’s going to make the play. That selfish attitude kind of gets me in trouble.”

Mariota meets with Falcons head coach Arthur Smith the day after his daughter is born. We do not see that meeting. Instead, we get a clip of Kiyomi talking about still being in the hospital when she “got a text from him that they’re going in a different direction.” It’s an “ouch” moment.

After that decision, Mariota surprised the Falcons by leaving the team to have knee surgery, which serves as our cliffhanger going into the next episode.

Episode 6 — Under Pressure​

The next time we see Mariota after his mid-December benching is in 2023, when he has moved back to Las Vegas and briefly gives his perspective on his decision to leave the team.

“I thought I was making a good decision for everybody,” he says.

Smith addresses the situation, expresses his fondness for Mariota, and we move on.

With Mariota out of the way, the series turns to setting up Cousins for his fall. We see the Vikings quarterback answering fan mail and hanging out in a bookstore dressed in his signature “So Dad It Hurts” style. (Speaking of Netflix, I’ll give you $50 if half of Cousins’ “Watch Again” column is not World War II documentaries.)

Episode 7 — Win or Go Home​

Spoiler: Cousins goes home. The 34-year-old’s attempt to get his second career playoff win is thwarted by the wild-card Giants when Cousins throws an inexplicably short pass on fourth down on the final significant play of the game.

He walks through his thought process on the play and then takes a reflective drive home with his wife, Julie. The wives get almost as much screen time throughout the series as the quarterbacks, which often adds interesting perspective and certainly market-tested well with Netflix’s maximize-the-audience algorithm.

Then Cousins is gone, and we’re left with only Mahomes. It’s like an NFL version of “Survivor.”

On the field, we see Mahomes’ playoff ankle injury and hear his sideline debate with head coach Andy Reid about whether he’s coming out of a game. It sounds remarkably like trying to get a 9-year-old to take a bath if that 9-year-old had a super foul mouth.

“Why can’t I do it at halftime?” Mahomes pleads at one point.

Off the field, we get our first glimpse of Mahomes’ house under construction. Allow me to describe the house. Close your eyes and picture the house a 27-year-old with a $450 million contract would build. That’s it. And it’s awesome.

Episode 8 — The Final Chapter​

We’re basically just putting a bow on everything. Mahomes gets his revenge on Joe Burrow and the Bengals (I’m still miffed we didn’t get anything from the pregame/locker room with Mahomes and the Chiefs responding to all the Cincinnati trash talk.), and Mahomes wins the Super Bowl.

The Mahomes family goes to Disneyland, we get quick wrap-ups with Cousins and Mariota, and everyone lives mostly happily ever after.

Should you watch “Quarterback”? Yes, you should watch it. It’s football, and it’s July.

Netflix's 'Quarterback': What we learned about Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins, Marcus Mariota

Netflix's "Quarterback" docuseries is out. It's billed as an inside look at the most celebrated position in sports. It is. Kind of.

theathletic.com

 

[JustAGuy1]

It is well worth watching.

 

[odanny]

It is well worth watching.

Reading the hilarious comments on the Athletic story, Mahomes wife comes across as insufferable, being called "Mahomes-Kardashian", I might watch a few episodes.

 

[JustAGuy1]

She is a Barbie through and through.

 

[Hellbilly]

Reading the hilarious comments on the Athletic story, Mahomes wife comes across as insufferable, being called "Mahomes-Kardashian", I might watch a few episodes.

I’m watching it right now. I really like it. Most mini series don’t hold my interest but this one is.