Andy Reid had seen the arm. Everyone had. You couldn't miss the effortless way Patrick Mahomes flicked the football at Texas Tech, how the ball left his hand at impossible angles, traveling farther and at higher velocity than anyone else playing college football in 2016.
None of that mattered much to Reid. What caught his eye -- the moment he began to consider drafting a quarterback to replace his then-32-year-old Pro Bowl starter -- was how often Mahomes' seemingly wild throws found their targets.
Reid has built his two-decade romp through offensive football on a simple foundation: Quarterbacks who were accurate and who had what longtime friend and former Philadelphia Eagles executive Joe Banner calls "mental acumen.