KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI – JANUARY 13: Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs heads to the sideline after his helmet was cracked during the third quarter in the AFC Wild Card Playoffs against the Miami Dolphins at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on January 13, 2024 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by David Eulitt/Getty Images)
Kansas City Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes displayed the perfect example of how cold the team’s Wild Card game against the Miami Dolphins was when he scrambled out of the pocket and took a huge hit that normally wouldn’t make the highlight reel.

Midway through the third quarter, the Chiefs were in the red zone when the game was suddenly stopped because Mahomes’ helmet was shattered with a hole in it. On 2nd & goal, Mahomes scrambled before he was tackled by Dolphins safety Deshon Elliot. Their helmets collided which sent a piece of Mahomes’ helmet flying onto the field.

Mahomes played two more plays with a hole in his helmet before play was stopped and switched helmets.

This week, VICIS, which makes the ZERO2 helmet Mahomes was wearing at the time, released a statement regarding the incident, saying the product still did its job despite cracking.

“At VICIS, athlete safety is our top priority,” the company said in a statement issued on Tuesday. “Extreme conditions like those experienced in Saturday evening’s NFL playoff game are bound to test the limits of even the highest performing products. While outer shell damage is not ideal, the ZERO2 helmet did its job of protecting Patrick Mahomes during a head-to-head impact in unprecedented cold temperatures. The exclusive multi-layer technology employed in the VICIS ZERO2 helmet model utilizes a deformable outer shell, RFLX impact absorption layer, followed by a stiff inner shell. This design approach is similar to the crumple zone of modern cars, effectively absorbing and dispersing impact forces at the point of contact. This technology, which has earned the top ratings of the NFL Performance Testing rankings and sits atop the Virginia Tech ratings, has been adopted by several athletes across the NFL, NCAA, and throughout high school and youth football.

“VICIS helmets are extensively tested in high-impact conditions across a wide range of temperatures. We are committed to continuing our development of the safest helmets in football and working with our partners in the NFL and other organizations to constantly gain knowledge and continuously advance protective technology. We remain focused on protecting athletes at every level of play by developing the highest performing products available. As the leader in technology advancement within the football protective space, our confidence in the superior performance of our helmet designs has never been greater.”

The weather during the game at Arrowhead Stadium that day had temperatures at kickoff of -4 degrees Fahrenheit and a ridiculous wind chill of -20 degrees.

Patrick Mahomes threw for 262 yards and a touchdown and overcame a shattered helmet to lead the Kansas City Chiefs to victory over the Miami Dolphins.

Since Patrick Mahomes became the starting quarterback of the Kansas City Chiefs, the Chiefs have played 11 playoff games. The Chiefs QB has only ever played at Arrowhead Stadium or in a neutral-site game during the Super Bowl.

That will change this weekend as he gets ready to play in an equally cold Buffalo at Highmark Stadium.