How have the defenses of the Eagles’ current DC, Vic Fangio held up vs the best of this generation?
Well in short… not great, 0-8 actually. However, it does feel like there should be some serious additional context provided when having this discussion. Vic Fangio-led teams have faced Mahomes eight times. Six times were when Fangio was the head coach of the Broncos and two times were when he was the defensive coordinator in Miami.
Vic Fangio’s Early Struggles Against Mahomes
2019: Vic Fangio’s first season as a head coach in the NFL didn’t go all that well. He had a mediocre 7-9 record and they were especially bad against the Chiefs where his team was 0-2 and allowed 53 points in the two games. In the first game in Denver, Mahomes actually got hurt on a 4th down QB sneak early in the 2nd quarter. At that point in the game, he was 10/11 for 76 yards and a TD. He did not return due to a knee injury and the Chiefs still whooped Denver 30-6. The second game was a little more competitive: in Kansas City they held Mahomes to only 23 points, sacking him 3 times and getting a pick. Mahomes still did very well though going 27/34 for 340 yards and 2TDs. Denver would lose 23-3, their offense was terrible.
2020: This season is already kind of a mess given what was going on in the world, but Vic Fangio did face Mahomes two more times. The Broncos went 5-11 losing to Kansas City twice. The first game was in Denver and the Chiefs cooked the Broncos, 43-16. Mahomes however, was weirdly mediocre. 15/23 for 200 yards and a TD while being sacked three times. The Chiefs defense, running game, and special teams accounted for 30 of the points and Chadd Henne accounted for another TD once Mahomes was benched for the night. The second game in Kansas City was the most competitive so far. The Chiefs squeaked out the game 22-16 and Mahomes was 25/40 for 318 yards and a TD. He was sacked once.
2021: Stop me if you’ve heard this already, the Broncos were bad, going 7-10, and lost twice to the Chiefs. However, they were competitive against the Chiefs. In the first match-up in Kansas City, the Chiefs only scored 22 points. This might have been their best outing against him. They stifled Mahomes in this one. He went 15-29 for 184 yards, 0 passing TDs, 1 rushing TD, a pick, and a sack. The Chiefs offense only got into the endzone once as the Chiefs won 22-6. The second game in Denver was close with the Chiefs edging out the Broncos 28-24. Mahomes went 27-44 for 2 TDs and was only sacked once.
2023: A New Chapter with the Dolphins
2023: Vic Fangio would take over as the defensive coordinator for the Dolphins in the 2023 season and would face Mahomes two more times. The first was a 21-14 loss in Kansas City. They held Mahomes under 200 yards passing as he threw 185 yards on 20/30 with 2 TD passes. He also lost a fumble. This was probably the most impressive matchup as they held the Mahomes offense to only 14 points. The second matchup was a playoff game in KC. The weather was icy cold with starting temperatures being around -4 degrees with a windchill that made things worse. Dolphins lost 26-7 as Mahomes had 23/41 with 262 yards passing and a TD.
So we land at 0-8. A Fangio team has never beaten Mahomes. An alarming statistic, however, a statistic that also should carry a pretty heavy asterisk. Fangio’s Broncos were bad. The majority of the games were started by Joe Flacco, Teddy Bridgewater, and Drew Lock who don’t exactly inspire hope. As you can tell by the final scores of those games, the Broncos offense could barely move the ball and forced the defense to spend the majority of those games on the field. In Miami, while there was a lack of talent, it also sounded like the Dolphins refused to buy into his system and wanted him gone, which looking back on it is a pretty big criticism of the Dolphins. He has prevented Mahomes from going absolutely nuclear on him and has found some limited success at times. The 0-8 is more of an indicator of how drastically better the Chiefs are than the Broncos and Dolphins.
Can Vic Fangio Finally Solve Mahomes?
Can this be a horrifying omen for things to come? Sure. Can this also be spun in a very positive way? Absolutely. While he hasn’t been overly successful, Vic Fangio being this familiar with Mahomes is good. He has 8 games firsthand, including a playoff game, to see what makes him tick. His most recent outings being some of his more successful against Mahomes are a good sign and maybe a sign that he is learning.
The other elephant in the room is just how much more talented the Eagles are than any other team Fangio has coached. This Eagles team is loaded. The best defense in the NFL and it is not by accident. Fangio’s scheme has already stymied elite QBs this year like Jayden Daniels, Matt Stafford, Jordan Love, Joe Burrow, and Lamar Jackson. They also have amplified their turnover game having 21 turnovers in their past 6 games. 10 of them have been in their 3 playoff games. Mahomes is not prone to turnovers, but with 13 of them in 18 games this year, it may be something the Eagles can make happen.
While it is impossible to say Mahomes is declining, 2023 and 2024 have been by far the worst two statistical seasons of his career. Is it the loss of his number-one wide receiver, Tyreek Hill? The loss of Eric Bieniemy, the offensive coordinator behind his early success? Maybe a general league downturn? The QB numbers overall in the last two seasons haven’t been anything too crazy. Either way, Mahomes is still the GOAT of the league until someone can knock him off. He is human though and has lost, he’s even lost a Super Bowl. Can the defensive coordinator who has had 8 good looks at him, finally stop him enough to get a win on the biggest stage? We shall see.
Will Vic Fangio finally best Patrick Mahomes? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or TikTok.