Patrick Mahomes will 'strive to get as close' as he can to Tom Brady's 7 rings
Patrick Mahomes' first five seasons as a starting quarterback have been eerily similar to Tom Brady's. And he wants to keep it going.
When he was asked about the race to catch the NFL icon in an interview with NBC Sports, the Chiefs quarterback said that he is chasing Brady's seven Super Bowl wins.
"Seven’s a lot, but I’ll strive to get as close as I can," Mahomes said. "To win seven Super Bowls and be in 10 Super Bowls, it’s crazy to even think about, even for me today. The other stats kinda come with it. I knew at Texas Tech, I put up a lot of stats but didn’t win games. When I got to the NFL, I knew I wanted to be a winner [first]. Try to win Super Bowls and give my team the best that I can."
While Mahomes has already accomplished a great deal of team success, winning two Super Bowls and playing in another, Brady had him slightly beat there in his first five seasons as a starter, winning three.
Beyond that, Mahomes has been statistically better through his first five seasons as a starter than Brady. In the regular season, Mahomes won more games (63 to 58), threw for more yards (23,957 to 18,029), more touchdowns (192 to 123) and fewer interceptions (48 to 66) in the regular season. Of course, Mahomes began his career in a more passer-friendly era than Brady's, but his passer rating is also notably higher (106 to 88.5).
Mahomes has statistically been one of the league's top passers since 2018, earning more individual accolades through his first five seasons as a starter than Brady did. Mahomes was named a Pro Bowler in each of his first five seasons as a starter, while Brady earned that honor three times. On top of that, Mahomes has two first-team All-Pro nods and two MVPs, something that Brady didn't earn in his first five seasons as a starter.
On top of that, Mahomes is also statically the better passer in the postseason than Brady was in their first five seasons as starters. Mahomes threw for more yards (4,084 to 2,493) and touchdowns (35 to 15) with a higher passer rating (107.4 to 89.4), as he played in three more playoff games.
But Mahomes' focus is still on winning Super Bowls. In fact, Brady got the best of Mahomes in their only two playoff matchups, beating him in the 2018 AFC Championship Game with the Patriots before defeating him in Super Bowl LV as a member of the Buccaneers.
Brady's individual peak occurred following his first five seasons as a starter, winning three MVPs and earning five All-Pro nods. More importantly, he won four more Super Bowls.
Mahomes is hoping for similar team success in the coming years, and his coach thinks he has a similar trait to Brady to help him get there.
"I haven’t worked with Tom, of course. But I think they both see the big picture — the very big picture," Andy Reid told NBC Sports. "Patrick kind of looks at football with a panoramic shot. He sees the whole thing for everybody. I think that’s unique. He can see where the whole team can go, where he can go, our present, our future. Most people are, when you really cut to the chase, self-centered.
"Patrick’s team-centered. Listen to him compliment the 12th-string players. That helps a team. And on top of that, he’s a football player."
Stats courtesy of FOX Sports research.