The Tragic Truth About Patrick Mahomes' Mother Randi

The family of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is fast becoming one of the NFL's most prominent. Brother Jackson Mahomes is a rather divisive social media influencer, wife Brittany Mahomes partly owns the National Women's Soccer League's Kansas City Current and has also become Donald Trump's MAGA BFF, while half-brother Graham Walker looks set to follow in his footballing footsteps having spent three seasons playing at Brown University.

But the Mahomes you're most likely to see in the headlines of late is his mother, Randi Mahomes. Indeed, whether it's wading in on Harrison Butker's homemaker controversy, reacting to her daughter-in-law's Sports Illustrated photoshoot, or making friends with arguably the most famous footballer in the world right now, Taylor Swift's boyfriend Travis Kelce, the former event planner has become an unlikely tabloid favorite.

Of course, not everything in Randi's life has always been so rosy. From her sofa-surfing teenage years and the stresses of adapting to fame to the losses of family members and lack of financial security, here's a look at her tragic truth.

Randi Mahomes first became a mother at the age of just 20 when she gave birth to future NFL star Patrick Mahomes. And although she acknowledges that parenthood isn't automatically the best thing for every young adult, she's glad she became pregnant when she did.

In an interview with People ahead of Patrick's fourth appearance at the Super Bowl, Randi revealed that giving birth while barely out of her teens made her both grow up and find direction in her life: "Sometimes, I look back and I'm like, 'Where would I be if I didn't have him?' Because I wasn't going down a bad road, I just wasn't going on a road."

Indeed, after moving out of her parents' house in the wake of her high school graduation, Randi found herself with nowhere in particular to call home, spending several years couch surfing at various friends' places. "It was kind of like flipping a coin," she added, referring to the moment when motherhood turned her into a completely different person.

Randi Mahomes is living proof that a life of fame and fortune doesn't always guarantee contentment. In fact, since her eldest, Patrick Mahomes turned her family members into household names, the former event planner has become green with envy at her friends' lower-profile existence.

"I'm jealous that they have this normal situation, and we don't," she told "The Mom Game" podcast in 2024, noting that several of her pals can enjoy spending time with their kids without the pressure of being in the public eye. In fact, Randi described the seven years after Patrick first made a name for himself in the NFL (2017) as the worst of her adult life.

"It's been really hard to juggle," she explained. "... Being proud of him and the hate that you get, and the kids get. I can't even explain how hard it's been. I've cried a lot. I struggle with it." Luckily, Randi has discovered that there's at least one perk to being the mom of a professional footballer and a social media influencer — free meals. "They don't even need me for money to take them to dinner. They take me to dinner."

Following a long-term illness, Debbie Bates, the mother of Randi Mahomes and grandmother of NFL star Patrick Mahomes, passed away in 2023. The news was revealed via Facebook by a family friend, Teresa Jane, who described Debbie as "The one who showed up for everyone every time."

Randi has since continually paid tribute to her late mom on her own social media pages. Following Patrick's inclusion in the prestigious Time 100 list, she tagged him in an Instagram post which stated how proud his grandma would be. She also took to the same photo-sharing platform a year later to pay her respects, telling her followers, "Missing my beautiful Momma a little extra today. Her love and light continue to guide me, and I am blessed to have the memories we share. Forever cherished, forever loved."

Just two months before the sad news, Randi had uploaded a video clip to Instagram of her mom fulfilling a wager she made about her grandson's sporting prowess. Debbie had apparently agreed to drink a full can of Coors Light if Patrick made it to the Super Bowl again. Once the Kansas City Chiefs booked their place, and much to the amazement of her daughter, Debbie was pictured chugging the beer.

After divorcing former MLB pitcher husband Pat Mahomes in 2006, Randi Mahomes suddenly found herself having to take on several jobs to make ends meet. But proving that mom guilt is all too real, the former event planner admits that she now regrets spending so much time away from her young family.

Appearing on Kent Hance's podcast "The Best Storyteller" in 2021, Mahomes expressed regret that she regularly missed out on quality time with sons Patrick and Jackson and daughter Mia. "I wish I would have only worked one and not give them as much stuff. I would work nights and weekends, and I wish I would have given up that second job and the money that helped provide for them. I just wish I would have just lived a little less."

While guesting on "The Mom Game" three years later, Randi revealed that she's now truly appreciative whenever she gets the chance to be around her kids, particularly when it's one-to-one. "I'm a little selfish sometimes. I want them for myself. So, I want to be able to talk to them and not have anyone around and just be our family."

Randi Mahomes found out the hard way that some people take their football fandom a little too seriously when her son, Patrick Mahomes, once again made his way to the Super Bowl in 2024. Indeed, while appearing on the podcast "Got It From My Momma," the former event planner revealed that she and her family had received death threats from those presumably not supporting the Kansas City Chiefs on the big day.

Randi also disclosed that the Mahomes have also had to deal with some rather disturbing closer encounters, too: "Strange men would stop and pull up to the house slow or take pictures or they would stop and get out," she told host Jennifer Vickery Smith. "It's like, it's beyond anything that I would have ever thought."

This isn't the only time that Randi has spoken about the unwanted attention she and her family have received. While appearing on "The Mom Game," she admitted that she's often cried herself to sleep over negative comments she's seen online: "Patrick's living out his dream, and I want all of my kids to do that, but the [attention] from different directions has been super overwhelming."

Randi Mahomes got more than she bargained for in 2023 when she headed out to do some shopping in her Texan hometown, only to encounter an individual taking full advantage of the right to bear arms.

On the same weekend Patrick Mahomes was enjoying a trip to the White House, his mom took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to recount her unsettling retail experience: "Yesterday at the grocery store, there was a man with his son that had a hand gun on his belt. And honestly, I wasn't sure if I felt a bit safer or afraid. So I went home fast. Sad the world we live in."

Randi was supported by many of her followers who could relate to the discomfort she felt. And she isn't the only member of her family to speak out about the nation's relationships with guns. Following the Uvalde school shooting, which left 19 kids and two teachers dead, Patrick tweeted, "Has to stop man ... prayers to all the families in Texas."

Randi Mahomes is unlikely to want for anything now that she's the mother of an NFL footballer. After all, according to Celebrity Net Worth, Patrick Mahomes is worth a colossal $90 million. However, her financial situation was very different in the wake of her 2006 divorce from former MLB pitcher Pat Mahomes Sr.

In 2024, the former event planner took to X to defend Patrick's Kansas City Chiefs teammate — and undercover Swiftie — Harrison Butker's controversial remarks, which amounted to telling a crowd full of female graduates that he "would venture to guess that the majority of you are most excited about your marriage and the children you will bring into this world" (via CNN Sports). To say her "Amen" response didn't go down particularly well was an understatement.

Indeed, Randi was criticized by many followers who believed she was way too privileged to wade into the issue. "You literally married a pro athlete," one disgruntled individual wrote. "You walked into money. Stay quiet." While that may have been the case, the podcast regular was keen to point out this wasn't the whole picture. "And was left with none," Randi clapped back, perhaps explaining why she had to take on two jobs while raising her three children as a single mother.

After becoming the mother of a multi-millionaire NFL footballer, Randi Mahomes suddenly found that her friendship group had significantly widened. But as she told podcast "The Mom Game," her circle of trust has largely remained the same.

"I've kept my close friends close," she told the hosts, adding that she's discovered the hard way that certain new acquaintances were only out for themselves. "It's really been hard just because ... I know I met them because of this new life we have. And I, like, want to give people the benefit of the doubt. And there's been a lot that's been great. But then there's been some that have been really hurtful because they weren't friends for the right reasons."

The NFL mom, who admitted that she might be a little too gullible sometimes, revealed that she has come to terms with the fact that she will forever be known as Patrick Mahomes' mom rather than her own person.

In 2011, 16 years after she gave birth to NFL star Patrick Mahomes and 11 years after welcoming second son Jackson Mahomes into the world, Randi Mahomes became a third-time mom with the arrival of daughter Mia. And with several jobs to hold down, the former event planner often had to rely on her eldest for babysitting duties.

Speaking on "The Mom Game" podcast, Randi opened up about how the family dynamics changed once she became a single mother of three: "I've always told Patrick and then Jackson that they, you know, he was the man of the house, and you know he had to be like the dad or be in charge ... He [Patrick] is still that way with Jackson and with Mia. He's very protective over them as a father would be."

But Randi went on to admit that she now feels guilty that the Kansas City Chiefs star had to take on such a big responsibility at such a young age: "I think it made them grow up probably quicker than I wanted them to."

Randi Mahomes once fell into such a pit of despair that she believed the only way out was to contact a member of the world's biggest reality TV family. Yes, during one particularly dark period, the former event planner decided that the only other person who could possibly relate to her experience of new-found fame was California Community Church co-founder Kris Jenner. Luckily, the matriarch was more than happy to pass on her words of wisdom.

During her appearance on "The Mom Game," Randi explained how their mom-to-mom conversation came about: "I reached out, and she called me and helped me just to kind of, like, ground everything. I was like, 'Patrick has his way, Jackson's looking for his way of doing something, and one day Mia will, and I don't know how to navigate it. All of your kids are successful, and you're helping with that.'"

Randi didn't disclose exactly what valuable advice Jenner offered, but she did reveal that she'll always be grateful to the entrepreneur for being there in a time of crisis: "I still value everything she shared with me ... I really thought that was amazing for her to take the time out of her day to just be a mom and talk to me."