What a win on Sunday could mean for Patrick Mahomes' legacy
Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs prepare to take on the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl 58 on Sunday, as they aim to make NFL history.
We have not seen a team win back-to-back Super Bowl since the New England Patriots of the early noughties. Teams have tried since but failed.
The Patriots were defated by the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 52 after their infamous comeback win over the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl 51. The Chiefs lost Super Bowl 55 after securing Super Bowl 54, and who could forget the Malcolm Butler interception in Super Bowl 49 that denied the Seattle Seahawks a repeat?
The Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas plays host to Sunday’s big game and is reportedly the most expensive Super Bowl in history. It can also be the venue of another moment of NFL history, one which could cement Mahomes’ legacy.
An amazing six years
It is hard to find a quarterback in league history who has started the first seven years of their career better than Mahomes. He started just one game in his rookie year, as he was the backup to Alex Smith.
Smith was traded to the then Washington Redskins and Mahomes was announced as the QB1. It is safe to say that he has not looked back.
Mahomes has had six seasons as a starter, and his worst season was losing in an AFC Championship, reaching four Super Bowls, and winning two and the potential for one more on Sunday. He has started in an AFC title game in each of his first six years as a starter, with five of those six at home.
Mahomes has yet to be eliminated in the playoffs at either the Divisional Round or Wildcard Round stage and has an MVP season from just his postseason statistics alone.
He has played 17 playoff games, the equivalent of a full regular season. In those games, he has gone 14-3 with 4,802 passing yards, 39 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. Mahomes, who already has the fourth and eleventh most passing yards in a single season, would be tied for 33rd alongside Dan Fouts with these postseason numbers.
With two MVP’s, two Super Bowls and two Super Bowl MVP awards, Mahomes, he has the chance to go fourth all time when it comes to Lombardi Trophies lifted. Only Tom Brady, Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw would have more.
A third Super Bowl before the age of 30 would certainly put him in the conversation of greatest ever quarterbacks. The way his career is going, the more he wins the more he will be in the “Goat” conversation.
Mahomes vs Brady
This could be the conversation that NFL fans have for eternity. As we have seen in basketball, with the Michael Jordan vs Lebron James debate, if Mahomes secures two or three more Super Bowls, then people will start to have these conversations.
Talent wise, they are both even, with Mahomes having the edge for natural talent. However, Brady was the 199th overall pick whereas Mahomes was 10th overall.
However, unlike the basketball debate, Mahomes and Brady actually played against each other and in big moments. They both share a 3-3 record against each other, but importantly, Brady has a 2-0 record vs Mahomes in the postseason.
These came in the AFC title game in the 2018 season and Super Bowl 56 in the 2020 season. Basketball fans can never truly know who was better as MJ and Lebron never played against each other so it is hard to have the debate.
However, the fact that Mahomes has never beaten Brady in the postseason and lost both those games against a 40+ years old Brady at the end of his career that means that Mahomes may never be able to eclipse Brady. Even if he catches up with Brady’s seven Super Bowls or 35 playoff wins, there will always be that argument in Brady’s favour when it comes to the greatest quarterback of all time debate.
Despite this, Mahomes may still be able to eclipse Montana and be seen as the second greatest quarterback of all time.