The year is 2001. A sixth-round draft pick out of the University of Michigan leads the New England Patriots to their first Super Bowl victory. Meanwhile, a young kid named Patrick Mahomes gets on the school bus. He is in first grade.
Jump to the present: this past weekend. Tom Brady, now playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at age 43, faced off against Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs. The greatest to ever play the game faced the man widely regarded as the next generation of football greatness. Two quarterbacks with cannons for arms and at least one previous Super Bowl win under their belts.
Spoiler Alert: Brady and the Buccaneers won. It wasn’t even close. Mahomes was unable to throw even a single touchdown, nor was his team able to rush for one. Brady, meanwhile, threw three touchdown passes for 201 yards with no interceptions. Leonard Fortunette of the Bucs also rushed for one score. More than anything else, this victory can be attributed to the stifling Tampa Bay defense. Patrick Mahomes spent most of his time running away from the top defensive line in the league. This chasing was led by top linemen Ndamukong Suh, Jason Pierre-Paul, Devin White, and their colleagues. Mahomes was sacked 3 times, took 8 hits, and was pressured a Super Bowl record 29 times.
Mahomes still has a promising future in this league. He’s only 25 years old, 18 years younger than Tom Brady. However, it seems like Brady has no intention to retire. His almost superhuman ability to stay healthy, accompanied by an extremely strict diet, means that he almost seems like he too is only 25. It’s a shame that former, longtime Philadelphia Eagles coach (and current Chiefs coach) Andy Reid couldn’t get another Super Bowl this year. But who knows what’s in store for the 2021 season?
Video recap by Carter Elliott
— Martin Heintzelman
