‘Quarterback’ goes deep with three NFL QBs, but Patrick Mahomes is the MVP here, too

Review by Brian Lowry, CNN

(CNN) — Taking viewers into the huddle and locker room and onto the field, “Quarterback” offers a three-headed view of life in the NFL trenches that should be enticing to football fans. As it happens, though, not all play callers are created equal, with Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes easily providing the best and most entertaining company, eclipsing the mere mortals who flesh out the Netflix docuseries.

At eight parts, “Quarterback” would frankly have benefited from a tighter focus, since watching Mahomes on and off the field is simply that much more interesting than Kirk Cousins and Marcus Mariota, who, even with the intense and far-reaching access, seldom feel like they’re opening up much more than the standard “We’re just trying to win ballgames” cliches.

Not everyone is meant for the spotlight, and a thirsty media has made sports megastars even more guarded, understandably, about their images. That might make perfect sense in terms of protecting their careers, but it’s simply not as much fun to watch.

By contrast, Mahomes’ championship run is peppered with memorable moments that display his personality and charisma, along with more mundane aspects of his life, like his insane workout schedule and the massive mansion/estate that he’s building as he and his family put down roots (and then some) in Missouri.

In the best sequence, Mahomes takes umbrage when an opposing defensive player thumps him after a play, then shouts “I’m here all day!” repeatedly at him after the Chiefs score a touchdown. He brings the same infectious fervor to bantering with opponents and pumping up his teammates (insisting on calling everyone “Dog”) by delivering fiery locker-room speeches along with Coach Andy Reid.

The cameras are also here, there and everywhere when Mahomes suffers an injury during the playoffs, as his wife Brittany groans watching him limp around, insisting that he should be taken out of the game. Mahomes’ father – himself once a professional baseball player – patiently explains that sitting down at such a moment simply isn’t in her husband’s DNA.

Starting at quarterback for Minnesota and Atlanta, respectively, Cousins and Mariota do reveal some of the “Agony of defeat” aspect of football that goes with “the thrill of victory.” All three also provide a stark glimpse into just how brutal professional football can be, revealing how bodies – even those honed to be in ideal condition – weren’t meant to endure repeated collisions with 300-pound men moving at inordinate rates of speed.

Produced by NFL Films (with former QB Peyton Manning among the executive producers), “Quarterback” delivers an up-close-and-personal window into America’s most popular (and lucrative) sport, mic’ing the three quarterbacks for every single game of the 2022 season. That also includes spending time with their families, whose emotions rise and fall on each score and incompletion, in a high-stakes sport without much tolerance for failure.

Only one QB gets to look into a camera and say, “I’m going to Disneyland!” (or Disney World) every year, so it’s interesting seeing the process unfold from different angles. Yet while it’s worth watching in its entirety, Mahomes is the real reason to tune in – the MVP not just on the gridiron, but in “Quarterback’s” playbook to hold our attention, too.

“Quarterback” premieres July 12 on Netflix.

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