KANSAS CITY, Mo – Patrick Mahomes was in the locker room for the sudden end of the Kansas City Chiefs season after the prolonged loss of the 2018 AFC Championship Game to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots when he came in to visit.
Brady was the one who before leaving to start preparations for the Super Bowl wanted to offer encouragement to his younger opponent, then in his first season as NFL starting defender.
Muhammad said Monday that Brady’s visit and encouragement meant a lot to him.
“It was important because he showed they were doing things right,” Mahomes said, as he and the Chiefs continued training for Sunday’s Super Bowl LV against Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. up early and try to put in the time and get to work. … He said that he respects what I do and how I play on the field and the type of person I was, he put a stamp on me that I had to enter and even be better to get to the Super Bowl. “
The Chiefs would reach the Super Bowl for the first time in 50 years next season. That’s where they defeated the San Francisco 49ers.
On Sunday, Mahomes will try to do something Brady did earlier in his career, which is to win back-to-back championships. He will have to go through Brady, who has a record six Super Bowl titles, all along with the Patriots.
“He is just like me,” Muhammad said. “He will leave everything he has on the field every time he is there. He doesn’t care what he has to do. He doesn’t care if he has to throw for 400 meters or if he has to throw for 100 meters. He wants to win. that I have the same mentality. I just want to win no matter what happens or how it happens. “
Mahomes, 25, grew up watching Brady, 43, win those Patriots championships. Mahomes said there is much to admire about Brady’s game in addition to his success.
“There’s a ton,” Mahomes said when asked what talents Brady has that he would like to put into his own game. “The way he is able to dissect the defense before pressing is something I really admire. I’m trying to get to that level. The way he can move in his pocket and can reset his legs, be completely calm and still throw money directly, no matter who is around him, is something I can continue to work on. As I continue my career, I will try my best to watch the tape on it, because it does it the right way. You can see how many Super Bowl championships his finger rings have. “
Mahomes would reduce the distance between him and Brady in terms of Super Bowl titles to four, with a Chiefs victory on Sunday. They should have a chance to earn more. He said he would like to play as long as Brady, who began his NFL career with the Patriots in 2000.
“I want to play as long as he lets me,” he said. “To do that, I have to take care of my body as much as I take care of anything else on the field. If you want to play this sport for a long time, no matter how physical, you have to invest as much time in your body as anything else.I have learned more and more in my young career so far about what I can do to stay available and healthy and to try to be in the best nutritional state I can be in. I feel like I can be better. “