Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes Are More Alike Than You Think
When Tom Brady won his first Super Bowl with the New England Patriots, Patrick Mahomes was just six years old. By the time the greatest quarterback of all time won his fourth ring, the rocket-armed prodigy was a freshman at Texas Tech. On the surface, the two quarterbacks couldn’t be more different. Brady garnered little attention as a sixth-round NFL draft pick and became an NFL legend due to his obsessive desire rather than his physical tools. Mahomes, on the other hand, is the most physically gifted quarterback to ever throw a football.
As Brady begins a new stage of his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Mahomes attempts to lead the Kansas City Chiefs to a second straight Super Bowl title, you quickly realize that the two titans actually share quite a few commonalities. From their early NFL success to their ridiculous list of individual accomplishments to their propensity to opening the wrong door, Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady are more alike than you think.
Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes were undervalued NFL draft picks
It seems like a lifetime ago that the Patriots drafted Tom Brady 199th overall. That fateful pick by Bill Belichick turned out to be his best personnel move in two decades as the overlord of the Patriots. At the time, though, nobody had a clue about Brady’s NFL future. He was buried deep down New England’s depth chart and seemingly had no shot at unseating $103 million quarterback Drew Bledsoe. Of course, one kill shot from Jets linebacker Moe Lewis opened up the door for Brady to take Bledsoe’s job. The rest, they say, is history.
Like Brady, Mahomes entered the NFL draft with questions about his fit at the next level. Granted, his prolific arm talent and immense upside made him a first-round prospect. Still, the fact Mitchell Trubisky went second overall while Mahomes slipped to the 10th pick speaks volumes about how NFL teams didn’t envision the gunslinger as a can’t-miss prospect. Even after the Chiefs traded up for their future franchise quarterback, Mahomes didn’t play a single game until Week 17 of his rookie season. He threw for 284 yards and one interception in his only start.
Obviously, Mahomes’ physical gifts made him a much more coveted NFL draft prospect than Brady. But both quarterbacks didn’t dominate from Day 1. Instead, they spent their rookie seasons on the bench, learning from established veterans. As soon as they became the starting quarterbacks for their respective teams, they flourished.
Star quarterbacks experienced early success as Super Bowl champions
Stylistically, Brady and Mahomes couldn’t be more different. But they both achieved incredible success early in their NFL careers. Operating as a highly-efficient game manager, Brady led the Patriots to their first Super Bowl title in franchise history at the age of 24. He benefitted from a run-first, ball-control game plan backed by one of the NFL’s top defenses. But as we saw over the next two decades, TB12 could thrive as the conductor no matter what weapons Belichick brought in. He earned three regular-season NFL MVP awards and four Super Bowl MVP honors in 20 seasons with the Patriots.
Like the NFL’s GOAT, Patrick Mahomes capitalized on his starting opportunity and instantly became an overnight success. In fact, that might be an insult to the word success. What Mahomes did in 2018 ranks as the most impressive first-year performance by any player in NFL history. He led the NFL with 50 touchdowns and only missed out on a Super Bowl berth because of none other than Tom Brady.
Falling short simply set up the Chiefs’ star for a revenge tour in 2019. A scary knee injury caused the NFL world to hold its breath, but Mahomes returned and led Kansas City to another AFC West title. Bill O’Brien and the Texans jumped out to an early lead in the Divisional Round before Mahomes ripped off five touchdown passes to send Kansas City to the AFC Championship. He proceeded to throw three more touchdowns in a tight battle against Ryan Tannehill’s Tennessee Titans. While he looked mortal against San Francisco’s terrifying pass rush, Mahomes made a number of clutch throws late in the game to give the Chiefs the 31-20 victory in Super Bowl LIV.
Patrick Mahomes can sympathize with Tom Brady’s accidental home invasion
Besides their on-field accomplishments, the two most recent Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks also have an odd habit of walking into the wrong home. Tampa’s newest resident has made headlines recently for a few funny off-field blunders. Though he expected to be walking into offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich’s house, Brady accidentally entered the wrong one. He wasn’t the only star quarterback to make that silly mistake, either.
Mahomes took to Twitter in response to Brady the home invader and shared that he too entered the wrong house when he attempted to visit a coach’s home. Luckily for Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes, they definitely know how to find their way into the end zone.
