Leading up to Super Bowl 58, there has been much talk circulating as to who is the next heir in dominating the NFL after the retirement of Tom Brady. Minus the controversies, Brady and the New England Patriots had a firm grasp on the league for the better part of the last two decades, but which of these two quarterback/franchise pairs can take on the mantle of being the next dynasty of the NFL.
Could it be Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, or Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers? Both teams hold a dominant defense and masterminds of head coaches; Andy Reid for the Chiefs and Kyle Shanahan for the 49ers. The Chiefs are primed to solidify a start to a dynasty with a potential Mahomes and Reid third Super Bowl win in five years, but can Purdy and Shanahan halt the Chiefs in a similar matchup to what started the rise of Kansas City; Super Bowl 54, where the Chiefs defeated the 49ers 31-20.
Brock Purdy and the San Francisco 49ers
Let's start with a point that isn't discussed as often. Quarterback Brock Purdy and the 49ers are much closer related to the story of Tom Brady and the Patriots once we think about it. This was pondered about on the Pat McAfee Show with guest Eli Manning, they were discussing if Purdy could be the Eli to Mahomes (Tom Brady).
Looking further into this playful thought, Purdy may actually be closer in comparison to Brady. Both being late round picks with an unorthodox rise to becoming starters while not getting much of the credit for the team's success early on. Even the names are kind of similar, if one were to really reach at this.
In other words, as Cam Newton would say, Purdy is just a "game manager."
This isn't to say there is something wrong with being a "game manager" quarterback, as Tom Brady showed us in being the greatest one of all time. Given the track record of the NFL over the last few years, game managers tend to be the ones who can sustain team success over longer periods of time.
But now, this argument can be thrown away in the case of the phenomenon of Patrick Mahomes.
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Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs
Have you ever seen both a "game changer" and a "game manager" like Patrick Mahomes?
I don't think so. Mahomes holds probably the most perfect mix of explosive plays followed by tactical football. In a down year, both in roster talent and team performance, Mahomes and the Chiefs were still able to make it to the Super Bowl.
And this was accomplished not by freak plays or even heavily leaning on the stars of the team, but instead by playing smart mistake free football. Sound familiar? This was the formula for success that the Patriots and Brady rode for twenty years.
But the difference lies in Patrick Mahomes. Brady was never considered crazy athletic, but was able to almost always make the right throw at the right time. Boring football is what won games for the Patriots offense; non-explosive, methodical scoring drives.
And now, over this past season, and especially the past three playoff games from the Chiefs, we can see Mahomes and company have altered their playstyles similar to this, but still hold the ability to turn up the gears when needed.
We can see now that consistency is the key to sustaining a winning culture in the NFL, not so much flash and explosion.
But who's to say that this doesn't also apply to Brock Purdy and the 49ers?
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Can there be a Brady in Both Mahomes and Purdy?
This is a long drawn out argument, that to be honest, holds zero weight as both Mahomes and Purdy are not yet near a point of their careers to be on par with Tom Brady. Anything can happen in these next few years in the NFL, and we've definitely seen the fall of imminent dynasties before our eyes before. A few examples being the Seattle Seahawks "Legion of Boom," Buffalo Bills of the early 1990s, Payton Manning led Colts, Ben Roethlisberger led Steelers, and Aaron Rodgers led Packers.
Mahomes and the Chiefs are unfortunately not exempt from this list, even if they pull out a third Super Bowl win. As it can be seen, it's hard to win in the NFL, let alone on a consistent basis.
How the Super Bowl 58 Teams Matchup
Coming from the opposite end of Purdy, Mahomes was drafted in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, but similarly, Mahomes' 2020 Super Bowl 54 winning team was just as potent as this year's San Francisco 49ers roster. A Chiefs team that held five All-Pro players in 2020 wasn't so far off from the Niners talented crew of that year. Also, just last year the Chiefs held eight NFL All-Pro nominees on their roster.
In Super Bowl 58, we may see some of the talent gap as the 49ers hold seven All-Pros to the Chiefs three, along with Purdy pulling the trigger; but the Chiefs still have Mahomes along with the winning recipe in the past and as of lately.
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