It’s a question that, just five years ago, would have seemed laughable. It would have been rhetorical—a joke whispered in the backrooms of the AFC while defensive coordinators lost sleep trying to solve the unsolvable puzzle that is #15. Back then, everyone was standing with him. The bandwagon was overflowing. The highlight reels were endless. The magic felt infinite.

But look at the image again. Look at the caption.

The question isn’t being asked because things are easy. It’s being asked because the air in the NFL has changed. The narrative has shifted. And suddenly, standing with Patrick Mahomes isn’t just a default setting for football fans anymore—it is a declaration of faith. It is a line drawn in the turf.

As the noise grows louder and the critics sharpen their knives, one truth remains buried under the hot takes and the Twitter threads: The ride isn’t over. In fact, the most dangerous part of the Mahomes experience is just beginning.

The Burden of the Crown

To understand why the question “Who’s still standing?” is even necessary, we have to understand the monstrous standard Patrick Mahomes has created for himself. He broke the NFL. He stepped onto the field and normalized the impossible. No-look passes, left-handed throws, scrambling 30 yards behind the line of scrimmage only to launch a laser into the endzone—he made the miraculous look mundane.

But greatness comes with a terrible tax: Perfection is the only currency accepted.

When you are a god, mortality looks like failure. When Mahomes throws an interception, it’s not just a turnover; it’s treated by the media as a systemic collapse of a dynasty. When the Chiefs lose a game by three points, the headlines don’t read “Close Game,” they read “Is the Era Over?”

This is the psychological warfare of the modern NFL. The world loves to build a hero, but they love watching a hero fall even more. The “Who’s still standing?” graphic implies that the herd is thinning. It implies that fair-weather fans are checking the exits, looking for the next shiny object, the next young quarterback with a fresh narrative.

But for the true believers—the ones staring at that image and nodding—this isn’t a moment to panic. It’s a moment of clarity.

The Memory of a Goldfish

Why is it so hard for the sports world to remember?

“Who is riding with Patrick Mahomes until the end?” implies that we don’t know the outcome. But we have seen the movie before. We have seen the script.

Do you remember “13 Seconds”? Do you remember being down by double digits in the Super Bowl—not once, but multiple times? The defining characteristic of the Mahomes era isn’t the blowout wins; it is the resurrection. It is the ability to look at a scoreboard that says “0% Chance of Winning” and laugh.

To abandon the ride now, simply because the road has become rocky, is to ignore the resume of the greatest improvisational artist the sport has ever seen. The people who are “still standing” with Mahomes aren’t doing it out of blind loyalty. They are doing it based on cold, hard data.

The data says this: As long as Number 15 has a pulse and possession of the football, the game is not over.

Betting against Mahomes because the offense looks clunky in Week 10, or because the receivers are dropping passes, is like walking out of a cinema before the climax of the film. You aren’t just missing the ending; you’re missing the point. The struggle is the setup for the glory.

The Psychology of the “Ride”

The phrase “Ride until the end” strikes a chord because it taps into the tribal nature of fandom.

In the Chiefs Kingdom, “standing with Mahomes” is about more than football. It represents a shared identity. It’s about the freezing cold games at Arrowhead. It’s about the decades of mediocrity that came before the Golden Era.

Those who are wavering now? They are the tourists. They came for the Super Bowl parades and the easy wins. They don’t understand that a dynasty is forged in the fire of adversity.

The image of Mahomes in the graphic—focused, ball in hand, eyes downfield—is the perfect visual metaphor. He isn’t looking at the scoreboard. He isn’t looking at the fans leaving the stadium. He is looking for the open man. He is looking for the solution.

That is why you stand with him. Because while the rest of the world is panicking about the problem, Patrick Mahomes is already calculating the solution.

The Danger of Doubting the Magician

Let’s address the critics—the ones who aren’t standing.

There is a growing chorus of voices claiming the league has “figured him out.” They say the defenses have adjusted to the deep ball. They say the salary cap has hollowed out the roster. They say the magic has run dry.

To them, I say: Be careful what you wish for.

There is nothing more terrifying in sports than a legend with a chip on his shoulder. We saw it with Michael Jordan. We saw it with Tom Brady. When the world stops kissing the ring and starts questioning the king, the king gets angry. And an angry Patrick Mahomes is a nuclear weapon in cleats.

The “downfall” narrative is fuel. Every article written about his decline, every tweet mocking a bad throw, every analyst picking against the Chiefs is being filed away.

If you jump off the bandwagon now, don’t expect a hand up when the parade starts again. The question posed in the image is an ultimatum. It forces you to pick a side. Are you a believer, or are you a spectator?

The Final Verdict

So, to answer the question: Who is still standing with Mahomes?

The smart money. The historians. The people who understand that greatness isn’t a straight line, but a jagged trajectory of peaks and valleys.

The season is a marathon, not a sprint. The “End” mentioned in the prompt isn’t today, and it isn’t tomorrow. The end is when the clock hits 0:00 in February. Until then, the story is still being written by the guy in the red jersey holding the pen.

It takes courage to stand when the wind is blowing against you. It takes guts to ride with a team when they look vulnerable. But that is what makes the victory sweet.

When the dust settles, and the highlights roll, and the improbable comeback is complete, the people standing with Mahomes won’t be surprised. They’ll just be right.

So, buckle up. The ride isn’t over. It’s just getting interesting.