Patrick Mahomes leads the new era of the NFL as the top quarterback in the league. He followed in the footsteps of seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady, who defeated Mahomes for his final championship and his only one with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The two quarterbacks sat down for an interview for FOX with Brady now leading his football career as a broadcaster alongside Kevin Burkhardt as the network’s top crew. Brady and Mahomes discussed their career playing against each other where they split six meetings, including postseason play.
Brady specifically alluded to the postgame interaction he had with Mahomes after the New England Patriots outlasted the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2018 AFC Championship. The moment seemed to mark the beginning of a passing of the torch as the league’s top quarterback and Mahomes never forgot that impact.
“You said it exactly,” Mahomes said. “For me, obviously, the biggest thing was you’re Tom, man. You’ve done this for a long time. You had that thought process in that moment to come into the locker room. You looked at me and said, ‘You’re doing it the right way. Keep doing it like that and you’ll have success.”
Mahomes won three Super Bowls of his own since that title game, including becoming the first team since Brady’s Patriots to win back-to-back championships. The comparisons between the generational talents swirl through media coverage year round, presenting pressure that Mahomes embraces.
Story continues below advertisement
“It’s honestly an honor,” Mahomes added. “I’m not saying that because you’re sitting here. You did it the right way. I think even more than the Super Bowls, it was the consistency you showed every single year, every single day. You came to work. You came to win. For me, it gives me something to chase. It’s going to be hard to get there, but I’ll do my best trying to get there.”
Brady will call Super Bowl LIX on FOX in February in New Orleans and hinted at what could be another run to that game for Mahomes and the Chiefs.
“I’m proud of you,” Brady told Mahomes. “Keep doing your thing the right way.”
Featured image via Paul Rutherford/Imagn Images