The legacy of Tom Brady has been brought into question with the recent success of NFL phenomenon Patrick Mahomes, who will make his fifth appearance in Super Bowl 59 on Sunday, Feb. 9.
As this year’s Super Bowl approaches, people are awaiting another performance on this stage by the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Mahomes. The three-time Super Bowl champion has appeared in the last seven AFC championship games, losing only two of them.
This continued success by both Mahomes and the Chiefs is not the first wave of dominance the NFL has seen. Any sports fan, especially one in New England, can easily compare Mahomes’ supremacy to what Brady did throughout his career.
From 2001 to 2018, Brady led the Patriots to nine Super Bowl appearances and won six of those games. ESPN reports that Brady also has the records for most wins (251) and most touchdown passes (649), along with a plethora of other records. After Brady was released in 2020, the veteran quarterback brought the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the Super Bowl where Brady would win his seventh ring. As Mahomes continues to win Super Bowls, NFL fans continue to compare his accolades to those of Brady.
First, the aspect of surrounding team support revolves around the talent level of the teammates for Mahomes and Brady, offense and defensive. KSC sophomore Sean Venezia said he believes that Brady’s lack of talented receivers can show how good Brady actually was.
“Obviously Brady had a better defense, but he never had receivers,” said Venezia. “Until he had [Wes] Welker and [Randy] Moss, he never had a 1,000 yard receiver. When you look at Mahomes, he has had guys like Tyreek Hill and [Travis] Kelce. It goes deeper than just a quarterback argument.”
The next aspect to consider about the two quarterbacks’ legacies is how different the NFL was when Brady won a bulk of his Super Bowls. NFL Operations tell us that, as the NFL has progressed, the rules of the game progressed to create a safer environment for the players. Certain hits and styles of tackling have been banned or constructed to a set of rules that has changed the way football is played in the NFL.
KSC sophomore Dylan Burwell said that the differences in league play highlight Brady’s excellence in the earlier part of his career.
“Mahomes is not close to Brady’s legacy only because Brady was in a much harder league. The players around were hitting harder and the rules were different. Mahomes is in an easier setting in today’s NFL,” said Burwell.
Mahomes has remained on the Chiefs his entire career so that is where he has collected his accolades. Brady on the other hand won six Super Bowls with the Patriots and another one with the Buccaneers. KSC junior Kenneth Corrao said he would take this into consideration when he compares the two.
“Mahomes is not close to Brady because [Brady] won a bunch of Super Bowls with the Patriots and then he was able to go to a new team and take the Buccaneers to win another one. Even though Mahomes is a great quarterback, he has not lived up to the Tom Brady legacy,” said Corrao.
With Super Bowl 59 right around the corner, Mahomes has the opportunity to notch a fourth Super Bowl victory to his resume, which would have him three behind Brady’s seven.
Jacob Enscoe can be contacted at
jenscoe@kscequinox.com
