In the Super Bowl LV rematch, Mahomes and the Chiefs got the best of TB12’s Bucs. If this was truly their last showdown, let’s celebrate the short but memorable QB rivalry.
“I like Patrick a lot… He’s got a great career ahead of him,” Tom Brady told reporters Sunday night.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback obviously knows a thing or two about talent. After all, now in his 23rd NFL season, the legend has played against more opposing QBs than anyone — and has gotten the best out of most of them. But Brady, in *presumably* his final year as a player, couldn’t recreate Super Bowl LV magic Sunday night at Raymond James Stadium. In a rematch of that 31-9 drubbing, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs topped the hosts 41-31.
Unless they miraculously meet again in Glendale on Feb. 12, 2023, there’s every right to assume we just witnessed perhaps the final Mahomes vs. Brady showdown, a clash of one of the greatest to ever suit up as quarterback and the 27-year-old superstar football fans will be comparing him to for years to come.
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Fans have witnessed six contests between Brady and Mahomes, and both have come away with three wins apiece. Before their fateful Super Bowl matchup, it was the January 2019 AFC Championship game that Chiefs fans branded as the most difficult TB12 loss of them all.
Despite that being Mahomes’ breakthrough NFL MVP year, Brady and the New England Patriots got the best of the Texas Tech product with a spot in the Super Bowl on the line; even the deafening sea of red at Arrowhead Stadium wasn’t enough to rattle the now seven-time world champion. The GOAT recorded 30 completions on 46 attempts for 348 yards and a touchdown pass.
(Ask any bitter Kansas City fan and they’ll likely assert that between the NFL’s overtime rules and controversial roughing the passer call that went against Chiefs defensive end Chris Jones, Brady had some help in that 37-31 win.)
But unlike Jan. 20, 2019 and Feb. 7, 2021, Mahomes was all smiles leaving the turf Sunday night.
“We wanted to win, for sure,” Mahomes said following this most recent victory. “Not only for that, but to get our season back on track. Obviously, it’s not a playoff win, so it doesn’t mean that. But to come down here in this stadium to win a game, it was special.”
It’s easy to understand why Mahomes and Brady draw so many spirited comparisons. Though Brady was a freshman at Michigan when Mahomes was born, the two are so clearly cut from similar cloth. Competitiveness runs through their bloodstream, and both will stop at nothing to score points for their respective side. Mahomes is revered for executing incredible no-look passes and Brady’s game-winning drives will go down as some of the best in league history. Twitter goes ablaze every time either of them takes the field. Just search for “Patrick Mahomes MVP” on Google and get comfortable reading the hottest of takes.
And despite successful on-field resumes and the hefty earnings to prove it, Mahomes and Brady represent more than just two great athletes with a couple of formidable arms to prove it. Both joined their current franchises when they were in need of a reboot. Super Bowl appearances and subsequent wins aside, Brady and Mahomes raised the fortunes of the players and the professional organizations around them, too. Their desire for victory radiates in all directions; it’s clear everyone who’s had the privilege of playing alongside them feels an extra jolt, whether a journeyman running back or an unsung tight end or a tenacious-but-undersized slot receiver.
All told, while quarterback’s tenure as the arguable GOAT may be nearing its end, football is in excellent hands with his No. 1 heir apparent, and the great deal of mutual respect between the two surely helps make the transition simpler.
All told, the game forever changed the moment Tom Brady stepped onto the field in place of Drew Bledsoe in 2001, but it’s in even better hands thanks to the continued ascendancy of Patrick Mahomes.
Mahomes vs. Brady by the Numbers
Tom Brady
23rd NFL season (age 45)
Super Bowl titles: 7
MVP awards: 3
Pro Bowls: 15
All-Pro teams: 6
Contract: 1 year, $15 million
Career NFL earnings: $332,962,392 (thru 2022)
No. 1 all-time in wins by a QB, pass attempts, completions, pass TDs, and passing yards
Patrick Mahomes
6th NFL season (Age 27)
Super Bowl titles: 1
MVP awards: 1
Pro Bowls: 4
All-Pro teams: 2
Contract: 10 years, $450,000,000
Career NFL earnings: $76,904,472 (thru 2022)
No. 1 all-time in passing yards per game, QB rating, and consecutive 300-yard passing games
Fastest QB to 20,000 passing yards, 100 pass TDs
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