As Patrick Mahomes rallied the Kansas City Chiefs for three touchdowns in the fourth quarter and a stirring 31-20 victory over the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl Sunday, did you think of Tom Brady and smile? I did.
As Mahomes, the Super Bowl MVP, stood beside his coach, Andy Reid, and answered questions from Hall of Famer and former Super Bowl hero Terry Bradshaw while a blizzard of confetti fell to the Hard Rock Stadium turf, did you think of that long gone 2002 Super Bowl when Brady stood on a similar stage in New Orleans next to his coach, Bill Belichick, celebrating his first Super Bowl title in a blizzard of confetti, and smile? I did.
Do you wonder if Patrick Mahomes is the new Tom Brady? I do.
Brady became the face of the New England Patriots that February night 18 years ago in the Louisiana Superdome not because he led the Patriots to victory over the heavily favored St. Louis Rams but how he led them on a 53-yard, nine-play, 81-second drive that set up Adam Vinatieri’s game-winning 48-yard field goal as time expired.
Mahomes is the face of the Kansas City Chiefs not because they beat the slightly favored 49ers but how he directed three consecutive touchdown drives in the fourth-quarter that obliterated San Francisco’s 20-10 lead. He tossed a one-yard pass to Travis Kelce with 6:13 to play and a five-yarder to Damien Williams for a 24-20 lead with 2:44 remaining. Trying to run out the clock, he gave the ball to Williams for a sweep left. Williams cut behind a block and sprinted down the sideline for the 38-yard touchdown run that settled the outcome with 1:12 to go.
Not to be forgotten are the Mahomes to Tyreek Hill pass for 44 yards on a third-and-15 from the KC 35 that helped set up the Kelce touchdown and the Mahomes to Sammy Watkins throw for 38 yards that led to the Williams TD catch.
And kudos to the Chiefs defense that shut out the 49ers for the last 17 minutes and 35 seconds of the game.
And to coach Andy Reid, the 61-year-old football lifer who won his first Super Bowl as a head coach.
Brady was 24 when he became a Super Bowl hero for the first time. As we all know, he won another five rings through the 2018 season.
Mahomes is 24, already an NFL MVP (2018) and now a Super Bowl MVP, the youngest ever. Will his career continue to parallel TB12’s? Unlikely, given the running Mahomes does from his quarterback position, but who would have dreamed that Brady, a sixth-round draft choice from Michigan who got his big break when Drew Bledsoe was seriously injured in the second game of the 2001 season, would lead the Patriots to nine Super Bowls and six titles? As they say, never say never.
Brady, even at 42, remains a key figure in the NFL. He didn’t play in the Super Bowl this year, but he was still on television, starring in a Super Bowl spot for the streaming service Hulu. He walked into an empty stadium saying “all good things must come to an end.” His career? His time with the Patriots? No, television as we know it.
Brady ends by saying, “But me? I’m not going anywhere.” Is that code for he is staying with the Pats? Who knows, but he must be chuckling over all the speculation. Throw in reports that the Pats are willing to spend at least $30 million to keep Brady, and the Chargers and Raiders are also interested, and there’s enough fuel to keep the TB12 story burning for the next six weeks.
Brady could become a free agent next month for the first time in his career. He has played coy when asked about his future, except to say it is unlikely he will retire.
Free agency is the last thing on Mahomes’s mind. As the Super Bowl MVP, he is on his way to Disney World.
