PCP Brady vs. Mahomes

Mahomes Argument 

When it comes to the GOAT conversation within the NFL, the most common answer you will find is Tom Brady. The greatest quarterback and the greatest player at every step on the gridiron. However, if there’s anyone that can match Brady’s excellence and prestige as the all-time best quarterback, it’s Patrick Mahomes. At the age of 29, Mahomes has a convincing argument for being the greatest quarterback to ever play the game. Despite what may have happened in Super Bowl LIX, his resume speaks volumes.  

Mahomes would get his get back the following season after losing to Brady in the AFC Championship. While not as statistically impressive as last season, he was winning when it mattered the most: in the playoffs. After a first-round bye, Kansas City beat Houston after a major comeback in the second half and got past Tennessee to reach the Super Bowl. In the game, Mahomes wielded the team to victory after a late game deficit to give Kansas City their first Super Bowl win since 1970, and the first of his career. Some people will scoff at it and say that Brady won his first ring in his first season as a full-time starter, but Mahomes won his without any controversies linked to it.  

Even with his legendary status, Brady still had moments where he succumbed to the pressure of trying to make history. In 2007, he led the Patriots to a perfect 17-0 record in the regular season, winning MVP and OPOY, on the way to Super Bowl XLII against the wild card New York Giants. What could have been viewed as the greatest season in NFL history, turned into one of the biggest upsets in all of sports, as Eli Manning played out of his mind and led the Giants to a 17-14 win over arguably the best offense the NFL has ever seen. While fans clowned on Mahomes for blowing it, Brady also had the chance to go for a three-peat and fell trying. After winning back-to-back Super Bowls in 2003 and 2004, the Pats were going for three in a row in 2005. Despite most of their roster being injured, the team still finished with a 10-6 record and won the AFC East. After getting past Jacksonville in the Wild Card Round, they got stomped by the Broncos in the Divisional, losing the game 27-13. Brady wasn’t half bad in this game, throwing for over 300 yards and a touchdown, but he also had two interceptions that cost him a chance at a three-peat. At least Mahomes had a shot; a shot that he let go of, but still had, nonetheless.  

All in all, Mahomes has done more in his first eight seasons than Brady has, and many fans talk down on him for blowing a chance at history. However, Brady had his fair share of blunders and fumbles in history. Mahomes, Brady and many other legendary players have attempted three-peats before, and all of them failed.To blame Mahomes for falling at something that many before him did as well feels a bit redundant. As of right now, Mahomes has a strong case for being the greatest quarterback that the game has ever seen. He’s not even 30 years old yet, he shows no signs of slowing down. Even with a subpar performance in last year’s Super Bowl, there’s no denying that what Mahomes is doing is legendary, and it’s almost certain that he’s going to maintain this level of play for years to come. 

Brady Argument

 
Tom Brady is the best quarterback of all time. He has seven Super Bowl rings and played until the age of 45 at a high level. Brady also dealt with his fair share of adversity in his career as he went from a fourth string QB to a starter and won a championship. When everyone counted him out due to his age, he also came back leading the Buccaneers to a Super Bowl blowout versus victory against Patrick Mahomes. Brady has never been blown out in a Super Bowl like Mahomes has and every loss Brady has been by one score or less, something Mahomes cannot say. Brady also holds three regular-season MVPs and five Superbowl ones after shredding defenses for years. In his career, Brady had a 97.2 overall passer rating and 64.3 completed percentage which are both difficult things to achieve. More than all, Brady was a leader and played with the hand that he was dealt. He has had stars play with him like Randy Moss and Rob Gronkowski. However, there have been years where he had no weapons and still took his teams far. He single-handedly organized the greatest comeback in sports history in the Super Bowl of all games and through all the odds, he seems to come out on top. Brady will go down as the greatest of all-time, not due to his number of rings, but due to how he carried himself and played the game the right way in an era where the refs did protect the quarterbacks like they do now. Tom Brady also proved the debate between players and coaches and that players are why teams win games and coaches only do so much for a team. The coach brings in the culture and designs the playbook, but at the end of the day the players on the field bring home the wins and are the ones making game changing decisions. Mahomes is a star athlete, however, he has not proven that he can win without Andy Reid and perform at as old of an age as Brady. The decision could change in future years; however, it is clear that Tom Brady is still the GOAT.