(Photo by Full Image 360)
Leading the Kansas City Chiefs to their third National Football League Super Bowl championship in his six seasons as the starting quarterback, Patrick Mahomes has already surpassed his peers with his second Super Bowl win over the San Francisco 49ers. With this win, Mahomes has entered elite company and is now in the argument of the best ever to play the position.
We understand that football is the greatest of all team sports, yet Mahomes’ early production has forced the discussion of him being among the best to play the position. By leading this Chiefs team to back-to-back Superbowl wins, he becomes one of three NFL quarterbacks to win a third Super Bowl before age 30. Tom Brady won his Super Bowls with the New England Patriots, and Troy Aikman won his Super Bowls with the Dallas Cowboys.
As quarterback of the New England Patriots, Tom Brady won Super Bowls in three of his first four seasons. Dallas Cowboys Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman also won three Super Bowls in four seasons. Neither Brady nor Aikman won the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player award in their initial Super Bowl wins, as Mahomes has. Even though Brady would eventually win two more MVP awards with the Patriots and another with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Aikman would not win another.
In those early years, neither Brady nor Aikman was considered the driving force behind their team’s Super Bowl wins. Many fans and pundits would agree that one of the best defensive minds in the game groomed Brady. He was also the beneficiary of playing with a veteran-laden defense and a great running game that led to those initial Super Bowl wins.
You can’t think of Aikman without thinking of his Hall of Fame teammates, often referred to as the “triplets.” The trio of the NFL’s leading rusher Emmitt Smith, the physical wide receiver Michael Irvin, and Aikman’s precision very well could’ve won three Super Bowls in a row. If not for their owner oddly declaring that anyone could coach that legendary team.
As Brady’s game matured, he did win a total of seven Super Bowls and five Super Bowl MVP awards, while also leading the Patriots to back-to-back titles. Similar to Brady, who won three Super Bowls in his initial four seasons as a starter, Mahomes would not only win the same number of Super Bowls, he would be named Super Bowl MVP in each of his Super Bowl wins and become the first quarterback to lead a team to back-to-back league championship since Brady and the Patriots did it two decades ago.
Mahomes has played in six consecutive American Football Conference games as a starting quarterback for the Chiefs. He’s played in four Super Bowls, won three Super Bowl Championships, won three Super Bowl MVP’s and two league MVP’s. He is the only player in the NFL with these accolades, and after bringing his team back against the 49ers, Mahomes has come back from a double-digit deficit in each of his three Super Bowl wins, while Brady has only done this twice.
“Never a doubt. Never a doubt in my mind,” said Chiefs All-Pro Tight End Travis Kelce. “When they had to kick that field goal. We knew it was on us. We have the best quarterback in the game, and we have the best offensive mind in the game.”
Mahomes became one of five quarterbacks to win three Super Bowls with the latest Super Bowl win. The other four quarterbacks to achieve this already have a bronze bust in the NFL Hall of Fame; Brady (will soon), Joe Montana, Terry Bradshaw, and Aikman are the others. Mahomes also moves into third place with 15 total career playoff wins, just behind Brady and Hall of Famer Joe Montana.
It’s more than his strong arm and his confidence to make creative passes that set Mahomes apart from his contemporaries. His intangibles and inherent ability to accept the blame when things go wrong enable him to demand the best from his teammates throughout this season. These skills will keep the Chiefs in championship contention for the foreseeable future.
“I think for me, just knowing when to take those chances and when not to. Obviously, I had that dumb interception I threw in the second half, and the defense bailed me out,” Mahomes said after they beat the 49ers in Super Bowl 58. “Just know that it’s not going the way that I want it to go, to not press, not push and let the game come to me, and I think that’s something we did in the end and were able to score at the end of the game.”
Even though the Kansas City Chiefs would make the playoff in Mahomes rookie season, he would only play the final game of this season while being allowed to sit back and get acclimated to the NFL game. After seeing his arm talent in their final preseason game of the season, it was a wonder how Chiefs head coach Andy Reid kept Mahomes on the bench for that entire season. Mahomes led the Chiefs to the Conference Championship game that season and won the Super Bowl in only his second season as the starter.
“Yeah, I think this means more. To battle through that adversity and come out better on the other side, I think that prepared us for the playoffs. We’ve had a lot of playoff runs, but this one will be up there. Just the way we continued to battle when times weren’t great.” said Mahomes. “Just know that the Kansas City Chiefs are never underdogs.”
Recent years have shown the Chiefs to be nearly unbeatable with Mahomes behind center. It’s clear who the best quarterback in the game today is, and with the guidance of head coach Andy Reid, Mahomes has elevated himself into a category where he is competing with the legends in the game. With what he has already accomplished and the potential in front of him, I do not think it is too soon for him to be considered the best we have seen play the quarterback position in the National Football League.
