The debate over whether or not Patrick Mahomes is better than Tom Brady all-time is going to be waged for a while, but one of Brady’s longtime teammates thinks the Kansas City Chiefs star is off to a more impressive start than his former quarterback.
Following the Chiefs’ 25-22 overtime win over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl 58, Tedy Bruschi said on ESPN that Mahomes’ first six seasons as a starter have surpassed Brady’s.
“In the first six seasons, Patrick Mahomes is playing better quarterback than Tom Brady,” Bruschi told colleagues Rex Ryan, Randy Moss, Alex Smith and Laura Rutledge.
In Bruschi’s opinion, the major edge for Mahomes is that he immediately became a star and an elite quarterback once he assumed the starting role in KC, whereas Brady took time to come into his own.
“If we’re talking the first six seasons, I believe there is a difference, if we’re talking the first six,” Bruschi said. “Because Patrick came in in his first year as a starter, wins the MVP and the whole team is on his back immediately.
“Tom came in, Tom really developed those first six years. Tom needed the defense and the running team around him. In ’01, Tom Brady was only responsible for one touchdown with his arm in that entire playoffs…Tom Brady was a complementary piece. That’s the big difference, from Patrick Mahomes in these first six years.”
Bruschi’s point is a strong one, though Mahomes is still deferential to Brady when asked to compare himself to the GOAT.
“To me, it’s always going to be tough because Brady beat me in the Super Bowl,” Mahomes said following Sunday’s game. “That’s one thing he’ll always have on my head.
“But it gives me something to strive for every single day. Whenever I’m tired and I don’t want to work, I know that I have to do it in order to be in moments like this.”
Mahomes has already had three “moments like this” in his first six seasons as a starter. He trails Brady in all-time Super Bowl rings seven to three, but has plenty of time to close the gap.