An unexpected weapon stepped up in the Kansas City Chiefs' 25-22 Super Bowl overtime victory over the San Francisco 49ers, as Mecole Hardman was on the receiving end of the game-winning toss. It's fair to say that Kansas City's trade-deadline gamble paid off, but it was such a big moment, Hardman didn't even realize he was at the center of it.
In a postgame interview with NFL Network, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes said that Hardman had no idea he had just won the Super Bowl with his catch. The wideout explained that he "blacked out."
Check out what Mahomes and Hardman said, here:
Mecole Hardman had no clue he caught the game-winning TD until @PatrickMahomes told him 😂 pic.twitter.com/ZT9V37H8E1
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) February 12, 2024
THE CHIEFS ARE BACK-TO-BACK SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS! pic.twitter.com/ZzfhTyUXg9
— NFL (@NFL) February 12, 2024
Hardman had a total of zero scrimmage yards in the postseason entering the Super Bowl, and infamously fumbled out of the end zone against the Buffalo Bills in the divisional round. Hardman caught just 14 passes for 118 yards and zero touchdowns in six regular-season games for Kansas City this season. In Super Bowl LVIII, he caught three passes for 57 yards and the touchdown that mattered most. Even if he didn't realize it in the moment.
