Patrick Mahomes: Tom Brady Is 'The Type of Greatness That You Strive to Be Like'

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes will have one of his idols on the field with him on Super Bowl Sunday.

Talking to reporters Monday, the defending Super Bowl champion said he strives to emulate Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady as he defines his own NFL legacy.

"He's the type of greatness that you strive to be like and be towards as you grow up," Mahomes said. "I grew up watching him play, and he's still here playing and he's still at the top of the game. I continue to watch him and watch the things that he does on and off the field in order to figure out the best way to make me the best player possible."

Sunday's game will be the fifth matchup between the NFL veteran and the fourth-year quarterback, with the series tied 2-2. Of those games, two came en route to the Patriots' Super Bowl victory over the Los Angeles Rams in 2018, when Brady carried the team through an overtime frame to punch their ticket to the championship.

In that playoff outing, Brady collected 348 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions, while Mahomes tallied 295 yards and three touchdowns.

Mahomes was the victor in a 2019 matchup, the last one that would see Brady in New England, and when the pair met in Week 12 of this season, Mahomes lifted the Chiefs to a 27-24 victory. He tallied 462 yards and three touchdowns compared to 345 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions for Brady.

The Buccaneers have not lost since.

Two different NFL generations will collide again at Raymond James Stadium on Sunday, with Brady hoping to earn his seventh ring and Mahomes trying to earn his second straight to start building up his own trophy cabinet.