Patrick Mahomes has earned hundreds of millions in the NFL, but his biggest investment may be about his children's future

Patrick Mahomes has earned more than almost any player in NFL history, and a lot of it is going into things that will outlast his playing days. Some sits in Kansas City sports teams. Some runs through the foundation he leads with his wife, Brittany. His 2023 contract restructure came with a $1.625 million gift to Boys & Girls Clubs of America, which showed how the pieces fit. With three young children at home, the long game looks like a family project. He has not framed it that way in public, yet the pattern is hard to miss.Patrick Mahomes is building wealth that lasts beyond footballThe headline number came in 2020, when Mahomes signed a 10-year extension that could reach $503 million. What he does with the money tells you more. Even great quarterbacks get a short window, and Mahomes has treated his paychecks like seed money.In 2023 he agreed to a restructured deal that eased the Chiefs' cap pressure. Winning keeps his value high, and his value feeds everything else.He holds minority stakes in the Kansas City Royals and Sporting KC. Brittany is a co-owner of the Kansas City Current in the National Women's Soccer League. Stakes like these tend to gain value as leagues grow, and they pay off whether or not he throws a pass.That is the slow part of the plan. Plenty of retired players learn that income stops when the contract does. Mahomes has built money that keeps coming without him on the field.Where the foundation fits inThe 15 and the Mahomies Foundation focuses on children's health, wellness and underserved communities. The $1.625 million gift to Boys & Girls Clubs came with a multi-year commitment, so it is not a one-time photo op. Mahomes said the partnership was about "investing in the future of children."He first talked about the foundation on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, describing it as something built around kids. The work led to his nomination for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award in 2022.Closer to home, the foundation helped fund new voting machines so Arrowhead Stadium can serve as a polling site for at least the next 10 to 12 years. It is an odd thing for a quarterback to fund. It is also the kind of project that keeps working long after the cameras leave, and rarely trends on social media.What it could mean for his three kidsSterling Skye, Bronze and Golden Raye are all young. Sterling was born in February 2021, so she turned five this year. Nobody knows what any of them will want to do.Mahomes grew up in Texas, yet he keeps tying his money to Kansas City. Brittany does too. That roots the kids in one place, which is not common for athlete families, who often move.That is where the structure makes sense. Ownership stakes can grow while the kids do. A foundation gives the family work in Kansas City that has nothing to do with a scoreboard, and gives the kids a chance to see giving back up close. Together they keep options open.To be fair, Mahomes has never laid out a family wealth plan in public. That link is my read of the pattern, not something he has said. The deal he signed in 2020 runs into 2031, when Sterling turns ten. By then, we will know whether this was a plan or just good habits.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.