Getty Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs are headed to their second consecutive Super Bowl.
The Kansas City Chiefs are headed back to the Super Bowl after knocking off the No. 2 seeded Buffalo Bills 38-24 to win their second consecutive AFC Championship Game on Sunday. With the Lamar Hunt Trophy in tow, the final stop on the #RunItBack tour will be the February 7 Super Bowl matchup in Tampa Bay against the NFC Champion Buccaneers, led by six-time Super Bowl winner Tom Brady.
During an on-field interview with CBS Sports reporter Tracy Wolfson after the win, Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes issued a confident message to his next opponent.
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Mahomes, who said he “felt like myself out there” despite wearing a special steel shoe insert to help protect the turf toe injury to his left foot, didn’t appear to be slowed down on Sunday evening. The fourth-year signal-caller lit up Buffalo’s 13th ranked passing defense to the tune of a postseason career-high 325 yards to go along with three touchdowns and zero interceptions on 29-of-38 passing.
Mahomes Excited to Play Against the ‘GOAT’
With Brady headed to his 10th Super Bowl appearance, Mahomes was asked about what it means to go up against the future Hall of Famer on the biggest stage.
“To go up against the one of the greatest, if not the greatest, quarterback of all-time in his 150th Super Bowl is gonna be a great experience,” Mahomes joked with reporters during his postgame press conference, via Harold Kuntz of FOX 4 in Kansas City.
During his weekly appearance with 610 Sports Radio’s The Drive on Monday, Mahomes doubled down on the “greatest” claim.
“To go up against Tom [Brady], all the success he’s had, it’s going to be a special moment. I’m excited for the opportunity to go up against the GOAT.”
On a day that also saw some in the media begin to speculate whether Bills quarterback Josh Allen “has caught up with Mahomes,” the Chiefs star made sure to have a little fun with the notion on Twitter after the game.
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Mahomes Further Entrenches Himself in NFL History
With Mahomes set to face off with the 43-year-old Brady, Super Bowl LV will be the first-ever Super Bowl between the last two Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks. Of course, Brady and the New England Patriots came out on top in 2019, defeating the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 in Atlanta. According to ESPN Stats & Info on Twitter, this year’s championship game will be the seventh overall between quarterbacks who have previously won a Super Bowl.
However, that wasn’t the only piece of football history that the 25-year-old Mahomes laid claim to on Sunday night. On February 7, he’ll become the youngest quarterback to ever start in two Super Bowls, Sunday Night Football in NBC tweeted. He is also one of only four quarterbacks — the others are Brady, Kurt Warner and Russell Wilson — to make it to two Super Bowls in their first four seasons with the NFL, according to NFL Research.
Patrick Mahomes is set to become the youngest quarterback in NFL history to start in two Super Bowls.
He’ll be 25 years, 143 days on Super Bowl Sunday.
Patrick Mahomes has joined Kurt Warner, Tom Brady, and Russell Wilson as the only QBs to reach the Super Bowl twice in their first 4 NFL seasons
Mahomes will have to beat Brady to join him as the only QBs to win it twice in that span
According to @EliasSports Patrick Mahomes is now 4-1 when trailing by 2 or more scores in the playoffs.
The only starting QB with more wins in that situation is his Super Bowl opponent (Tom Brady – 6).
Patrick Mahomes will play in 2 Superbowl’s before ever losing an #NFL game by more than 1 possession.
The last time @PatrickMahomes lost by more than a possession. November 19, 2016 vs. Iowa State. 🤯
Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady are set to face off in Super Bowl LV.
They were the two top-selling NFL jerseys in 2020.
1. Mahomes
2. Brady
Brady, Mahomes Set to Face off for the Fourth Time
When Kansas City and Tampa Bay take the field at Raymond James Stadium on February 7, exactly 10 weeks will have passed since the teams’ most recent matchup, a 27-24 Chiefs win in Tampa in Week 12. That day, Mahomes out-dueled Brady, posting 462 yards and three touchdowns compared to 345 yards, three touchdowns and a pair of interceptions for the Bucs signal-caller.
In total, Mahomes and Brady have faced off four times — all on Brady’s home turf — since the former entered the league in 2017. Before Week 12, the pair split their first two meetings with a 43-40 shootout win for the Patriots in 2018 and a 23-16 Chiefs victory last season. Super Bowl LV will serve as the tie-breaker of the 2-2 series in what could be the final matchup between the quarterbacking greats.
According to BetMGM, Kansas City opens as 3.5-point favorites against Tampa Bay, the first team in NFL history to host a Super Bowl on its home field.
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Chris Licata is an NFL contributor covering the Kansas City Chiefs from enemy territory in Denver, Colorado. Follow him on Twitter @Chris__Licata or join the Heavy on Chiefs Facebook community for the latest out of Chiefs Kingdom!