Is it outrageous to suggest Patrick Mahomes will be remembered as a better quarterback than Tom Brady?
I know, I must be out of my mind.
I am very much aware that Mahomes will never match Brady's record as a winner. The numbers that Brady will take into his golden years blow me and everyone else away:
— Brady finished with a 251-82 regular season record and 35-13 postseason record. Think about that: He played 23 seasons in the NFL and didn't lose a combined 100 games. How does that happen? It won't happen again.
— Brady won seven Super Bowls in 10 tries. Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana are next on that list of quarterbacks with four championships.
— Brady won five Super Bowl MVP awards. Montana is second with three.
— Brady won three NFL season MVP awards. OK, so Peyton Manning won five and Aaron Rodgers won four. So what? I'm hardly going to hold that against Brady.
— The topper to Brady's marvelous career was the Super Bowl he won with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after the 2020 season. He left New England after 20 years and won a championship in his first season with a second team. The best part of that? Brady didn't have to share credit with Bill Belichick.
We'll never see another quarterback more accomplished than Brady.
But that doesn't mean Mahomes can't end up being a better quarterback.
Mahomes also has gaudy credentials. He is 49-13 in the regular season as a starter with the Kansas City Chiefs — excluding his one start as a rookie in 2017 — and 10-3 in the postseason. He has led the Chiefs to their third Super Bowl in his first five full seasons and got them to the AFC championship game each year. He has won a Super Bowl and a Super Bowl MVP award. He almost certainly will win his second season MVP award this season.
Impressive, right?
What Mahomes has done this season is even more remarkable when you consider he lost, arguably, the most electrifying offensive teammate before the season when the Chiefs traded wide receiver Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins. Didn't you think Mahomes and the Chiefs would struggle without Hill?
There is so much more to Mahomes' game than just stats.
Mahomes is a better athlete than Brady was. He can beat an opponent with his legs as easily as his arm, not that his arm is bad. He threw for 326 yards and two touchdowns last Sunday in the 23-20 win against the Cincinnati Bengals despite not having his three top wide receivers because of injuries. He has thrown for 224 regular-season and postseason touchdowns with just 55 interceptions the past five seasons. His 105.7 career passer rating is an NFL record.
And did I mention Mahomes' legs?
Mahomes proved last Sunday against the Bengals that he even can win with just one leg. His game-deciding 5-yard scramble across the field set up the winning field goal. That he did it with a high-ankle sprain almost defied belief. He made sure the Chiefs weren't going to lose. He did what Brady and the other great ones did so often: He willed his team to victory.
Also like Brady, Mahomes has an incredible ability to see the game. His creativity is unmatched by any quarterback I've seen. I think of one particular play this season against Brady and the Bucs, no less. Mahomes was chased to his right as he avoided a sack attempt by defensive end Pat O'Connor. He did a spin-o-rama to avoid a tackle by linebacker Devon White. He then completed the play an instant before getting hit by two defenders by flicking a 2-yard touchdown pass to running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire.
It was one of the most amazing plays I've ever seen.
It was pure Mahomes.
Vintage Mahomes.
Mahomes can strengthen his case as the potential all-time best with a strong game against the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LVII next Sunday. If the Chiefs win his second championship, it's easy to think he will walk away with his second Super Bowl MVP award.
And get this:
Mahomes still is just 27.
Go ahead, call me crazy for thinking Mahomes has a chance to be better than Brady.
Just make sure you come back and see me in 10 years.
