Mahomes is the New Brady but the Old Brady won't go away. Logically, I want to pick the Chiefs in this game but logic would have had the Bucs lose to the Saints and the Packers (The State Farm people almost had an entire Super Bowl game as a commercial).
I'm aware that the Bucs defense had much to do with their victories but we need to look beyond that excuse. We've been making excuses for Brady's unparalleled success for years. I wonder if we'll do the same for Mahomes. Will we say that Mahomes was only so good because of Andy Reid's brilliant offensive schemes and the plethora of offensive weapons surrounding him? We shouldn't. This weekend we get to witness the Greatest of All Time, Tom Brady, face off against the only young quarterback with the ability to surpass him. Mahomes has a long way to go, but he has all the tools to get him there.
Mahomes and the Chiefs are scarily reminiscent of the beginnings of the Patriots dynasty. The talented young quarterback, the brilliant coach that finally won a Super Bowl, and the possibility of an incredibly long run. Soon, we'll be complaining about the Chiefs' constant, consistent post-season success. Brady must in someways see himself from nearly 20 years ago in Mahomes and the Chiefs. The ceiling is limitless, the potential untapped, and no worthy opposition in sight aside from injuries and miracle plays.
Then, of course, there is Brady. Brady started the year with everyone wondering who was most responsible for the Patriots dynasty, he or Bill Belichek. I still don't have anything bad to say about Belichek; however, Brady's success with this team proves his importance. It proves that he was, at the very least, equally responsible for the success in New England. Brady left and helped lead a 7-9 team into an 11-5 team with a Super Bowl appearance with victories over the Saints and the Packers, two teams favored to win. The Patriots stumbled to 7-9.
We always count Brady out. Always have. We attributed his success to a coach and a system and cheating and whatever we could think of to discredit it. Brady may have magic or made some deal with the devil to have this level of success for this length of time in a sport that demands otherwise, but we can't ignore it as a success.
Mahomes may get to walk directly in those footsteps. Mahomes is undeniably talented, so no one denies it. But, much like Brady, fans are always trying to find someone else to rave about. The "go out there, execute, and win" model that the Chiefs of now and the Patriots of old exemplified is not always a popular one. Fans seek out something more exciting, something with more peaks and valleys. Josh Allen and the Bills were an exciting show this year. The Titans and the Ravens each had exciting runs last year with Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson. We have to wonder though, are those guys the LaDainian Tomlinson and Peyton Manning of this era? Great regular season runs without much post-season success? Will Mahomes' constant execution hide in the background every fall and then emerge in the Super Bowl every February?
Mahomes may be the new Brady and the Chiefs the new Patriots, but once again Brady, after all of his achievements, has managed to angle himself as the underdog once again. Brady thrives as the underdog. Mahomes has a chance to dethrone Brady by repeating. Or is it more of a passing of the mantle? We'll see. It seems like the Chiefs should win this game, but I'll believe it when I see it. Brady has helped teams pull off the most unlikely of wins. Either way the game goes, I expect to see something special.