With Patrick Mahomes just one win away from claiming his third Super Bowl ring, many wonder if the Kansas City Chiefs superstar will end up matching or even surpassing Tom Brady‘s record of seven championships. Mahomes, however, believes it’s still too soon to make this kind of question.
“I mean, I’m not even close to halfway, so I haven’t put a lot of thought into it,“ Mahomes said Monday, via the NFL.com. “I mean, your goal is to be the best player that you can be. I know I’m blessed to be around a lot of great players around me. And so, right now, it’s doing whatever I can to beat a great 49ers team and try to get that third ring. And then if you ask me that question in 15 years, and I’ll see if I can get close to seven. But seven seems like a long ways away still.”
At 28, Mahomes is about to play in his fourth Super Bowl, having emerged victorious in two of his three previous appearances. His most recent success was last year, when he led the Chiefs to a hard-fought win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LVII.
Brady already had three rings at Mahomes’ age, having won his third championship with the New England Patriots at 27 years and 187 days old. There was a 10-year gap between his third and fourth ring, but Brady played for so long that he had enough time to lift the Vince Lombardi trophy more times than any other player in NFL history.
Mahomes would like to play for a long time like Brady did
Not only did Mahomes show respect for Brady by praising his seven Super Bowl victories, but he also admitted he would like to play for as much as he can just like Tom did, with the Patriots and Buccaneers legend pushing his retirement to age 45.
“That’s the goal, you want to play as long as they’ll let you play,” Mahomes said. “It takes a lot of work outside of the building. It takes taking care of your body, it takes eating healthy and try to get rid of the dad bod that I got. But try to do whatever you can just to get healthy and go out there and be the best player that you can be. My hope is to take it year in and year out, but I want to play as long as they’ll let me play. Fifteen years seems like long, but Brady did it and some other guys have done it so, I’m going to strive to see if I can do it as well.”
Brady extended his career so much that he ended up having three Hall of Fame careers, finishing his fantastic ride as an NFL quarterback with four Super Bowl wins late in his career. After winning his last three championships in New England at the age of 37, 39, and 41, respectively, Brady went on to win one last Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 43 years and 188 days old.
Mahomes remembers his only Super Bowl loss to date at the hands of Brady
That historic victory at Super Bowl LV saw Brady become the oldest player to ever win a Super Bowl. Curiously, it came against Kansas City, in what has been Mahomes’ only Super Bowl loss so far. That game has stuck in the Chiefs star’s memory, as the feeling of losing motivates him even more to succeed rather than the desire to win itself.
“I’ve lost the Super Bowl and I know how bad that hurts, and you want to make sure you stay away from that feeling,” Mahomes said. “So, I think even more than hoisting that trophy is when you lose and you’re in that locker room and you feel like you’re that close and you didn’t get it that feeling is — I’m almost more addicted to staying away from that feeling than I am hoisting the trophy.“
As long as Mahomes continues to lead the Chiefs to deep playoff runs, his distance from Brady’s record will continue to be a talking point. On Sunday, Mahomes getting close to Brady’s Super Bowl wins could become a matter of when and not if.
