Mecole Hardman Jr. had a pretty tumultuous season, but it ended in an absolute triumph.
After joining the New York Jets during the offseason with the expectation that he would be a top receiver in an offense led by Aaron Rodgers, things changed quickly as Rodgers suffered a season-ending injury and Hardman was ultimately barely used in the offense. He was traded back to Kansas City in October where he played the first four seasons of his NFL career, but he saw action in just six games with the Chiefs as he battled through injuries.
But none of that stopped him from making a huge impact in Super Bowl LVIII.
During the game, Mecole Hardman Jr. caught a 52-yard pass from Patrick Mahomes for the longest play of the game for either team and also caught the game-winning touchdown for the Chiefs in overtime.
The final catch was a moment that even left teammate Travis Kelce a little bit emotional.
“It brought me to tears seeing that he was the man that got us this ring,” Kelce said. “Sometimes the media world can be pretty harsh on a guy. … Mecole is one of my favorite teammates ever because he just keeps showing up and he keeps trying to find ways to win. Had a huge play for us early on that kind of sparked us and on top of that, finds a way to win the game for us when everybody counted him out — even the Jets counted him out.
“And man, we were so excited when he got back in the building because he’s the kind of guy who brings everybody together. He’s got that kind of personality.”
Hardman was an unlikely hero for the Chiefs, but they were certainly glad to have him.
