The Chiefs are positioned to dominate the NFL's next decade
PATRICK MAHOMES SAT across from Tom Brady and stared into the face of his future. Their one-on-one interview for Fox's Sunday NFL show took place within the strange setting of a hotel balcony -- Brady wasn't allowed in the pregame production meeting for Week 7's Chiefs-49ers matchup because he's a minority owner of the Raiders -- but the common ground they shared was undeniable.
Brady sat in the 29-year-old Mahomes' chair (so to speak) 18 years ago, during the 2006 season. Like Mahomes, he had already won three Super Bowls by that stage. The NFL shorthand had established him as an all-timer at a relatively young age. The direction Brady's next decade would take was uncertain, but it would have been fair to say he had little to prove. It also would have been fair to say his New England Patriots had high expectations for what could still be accomplished -- and they met them. Brady would play 14 more seasons in New England, winning three more Super Bowls, going to 11 Pro Bowls and earning first-team All-Pro honors three more times.
Mahomes turned 29 on Sept. 17, seven months after he won his third Super Bowl. His Chiefs are 7-0 in the final season of his 20s. The possibilities for the next decade of his career are enticing if you're the Chiefs, concerning if you're the rest of the league. And while the presence of Mahomes is as galvanizing as Brady's was, continuing to win big is going to require not only a generational quarterback but also the stability of a well-run organization to facilitate his strengths.
Brady needed the ecosystem around him to function at a high level, and it did so for a long period. In interviews with industry sources throughout the NFL, the similarities noted between Brady's Patriots and Mahomes' Chiefs are many. Those sources also noted that the league is different than it was in 2006, and highlighted the many ways the ecosystem that can produce an ultrarare, multidecade NFL dynasty is fragile. Kansas City does not have the league's deepest resources and has a reputation for being cautious in how it utilizes them. Andy Reid, its 66-year-old head coach and organizational architect, has an uncertain retirement timetable.
But all agree the Chiefs are set up for greatness, perhaps on an unprecedented scale. Mahomes and Brady know it, too.