Patrick Mahomes has shrugged off talk that he could surpass Tom Brady’s seven Super Bowl rings, as the Chiefs star insisted on Monday that he’s ‘not even close to halfway.’
Mahomes, 28, has already won two Super Bowls and Sunday will mark his fourth trip to the NFL’s championship. His one loss in the big game came against Brady’s Buccaneers in 2021.
And while the Kansas City quarterback is certainly on pace to threaten Brady’s record, he’s not focused on that ahead of a matchup with the 49ers.
‘I’m not even close to halfway, so I haven’t put a lot of thought into it,’ Mahomes told reporters, via ESPN. ‘Your goal is to be the best player that you can be, and I know I’m blessed to be around a lot of great players. So right now it’s do whatever I can to beat a great 49ers team and try to get that third ring.
‘Then if you ask me that question in 15 years, I’ll see if I can get close to seven, but seven seems like a long ways away still.’
Patrick Mahomes called being in the Super Bowl once again ‘surreal’ on Monday
There is talk of whether he will surpass Tom Brady’s record of seven Super Bowl rings
Brady’s seven Super Bowls are rivaled by linebacker Charles Haley’s five with the Cowboys and 49ers, while Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana are tied for second among quarterbacks with four.
If Mahomes claims his third ring on Sunday, he’ll become just the fifth quarterback to do so.
‘I don’t think I could have ever foreseen what was going to happen at the start of my career,’ he said.
‘You want to get to the Super Bowl. That’s your ultimate goal, and to be able to be in my fourth one, it truly is surreal and I just try to appreciate it every single time. You don’t even know if this will be your last, and I’ve been blessed to be in a lot with a great organization with a lot of great players around me, so I just try to maximize those opportunities.’
Brady and Mahomes shake hands after playing a regular season game in 2022
Mahomes and the Chiefs won twice on the road en route to this Super Bowl trip, defeating Buffalo and Baltimore after handling the Dolphins at home.
They’ll now face a 49ers team with arguably the league’s best defense, and Mahomes will want to avoid the anguish that Brady and Co. inflicted on him three years ago.
‘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,’ he said.
‘When you lose it and you’re in that locker room and you feel like you’re that close and you didn’t get it … I’m almost more addicted to staying away from that feeling than I am hoisting the trophy.’