Eric Williams

NFL reporter

Nick Bosa, edge rusher for the San Francisco 49ers, said it best: What makes Patrick Mahomes the best quarterback in the NFL is his ability to put teams aside while making difficult plays look easy.

“He’s able to get the ball long distances very quickly, so you don’t need that much distance,” Bosa told reporters when asked what makes Mahomes the best. “And then the way he makes plays. He’s able to pump up fakes and run for first downs when you really need them.

“His running ability is quite underestimated. He is sturdy, so he is difficult to bring down. And he makes good decisions.”

Bosa will be one of the key players on the defense responsible for slowing Mahomes as San Francisco hosts the Kansas City Chiefs next Sunday (4:25 PM ET) in a nationally televised game on FOX with Tom Brady will provide the analysis for the game – the first time he’s called a game featuring Mahomes.

It will be a rematch of last year’s Super Bowl, where Mahomes’ clutch gene was on full display as he led Kansas City to an overtime win. But it will be more than that, especially with Brady present in the broadcast booth. In a sense, it will be a passing of the torch, as Mahomes has clearly taken over Brady’s title as the NFL’s best closer.

Brady may be the GOAT, but when it comes to the clutch gene, Mahomes has his back. Both QBs are known for their ability to close out games in the fourth quarter in both the regular season and the postseason. Just look at the data, courtesy of FOX Sports research.

Fourth Quarter Comebacks: Not only does Mahomes have the best record in NFL history (13-10) when trailing entering the fourth quarter, he is also the only quarterback with a winning record in that situation (at least 10 games).

However, Brady’s total of 31 regular season wins entering the fourth quarter is the most behind in NFL history. Even more impressive, Brady has nineteen regular-season wins with two minutes left, the second-most of any QB since 2000. He has three two-minute comebacks in the playoffs, the most since 2000.

Late touchdowns: Mahomes has eight touchdown drives in the playoffs when trailing at any point. That ranks seventh since 2000 and third among active QBs (Russell Wilson has 13, Aaron Rodgers has 11). He also has six TD passes in the playoffs when trailing at any point in the fourth quarter, third-most among active QBs (Rodgers has eight, Wilson has seven).

Game-winning rides: Brady’s fourteen game-winning drives in the fourth quarter of the playoffs are the most by any quarterback in NFL history. Mahomes is tied with John Elway for second place with six).

So it’s clear that both men carry the coupling gene, and time will tell which signal caller ends up getting more of it. But is there any way Mahomes can already surpass Brady?

“The one thing I would say that could ultimately make him (Mahomes) better than Tom Brady is that he can extend the plays to a whole other level,” Rob Gronkowski said on his “Dudes On Dudes” podcast with former New England Patriots. teammate Julian Edelman. ‘But he’ll never be better than Tom. And even if he is, I’ll never say that because I love Tom.

“But the way he can extend his play, that’s what makes the Kansas City Chiefs so good. He’s about to get sacked, and then he just rolls out, spins off a defender and throws it to Travis Kelce or Tyreek Hill while he had done so.” him, or an unnamed seventh-rounder.”

Just as Brady owned the NFL, Mahomes and the Chiefs have similarly dominated San Francisco. Mahomes is 4-0 against the 49ers in his career, including two Super Bowl wins. He has completed 68% of his passes for an average of 364.5 yards per game, with 11 touchdowns and four interceptions, good for a passer rating of 104.5 in those games.

“Fifteen is a great player,” San Francisco receiver Deebo Samuel acknowledged on his podcast this week. “He’s going to do everything he can at any time. I don’t like to refer back to Super Bowls, but my rookie year was over, and Pat Mahomes is just going to do things that Pat Mahomes does.

“And during the two-minute drill last Super Bowl, it’s just Pat Mahomes doing Pat Mahomes things. You should give him his flowers.’

While Mahomes was a beast with the game on the line, this season was statistically his worst through five games of any season in his career. Only Will Levis (seven) has more interceptions than Mahomes (six), and his passer rating of 88.9 is the lowest in his seven-year NFL career.

But don’t tell that to San Francisco defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen.

“No matter how many times you go against Mahomes, it’s still going to be tough,” Sorenson said. “It helps a little bit because you understand the preparation for him. But he’s so difficult because he doesn’t always do the same thing.

“The arm angle is never the same. He doesn’t always put his feet on the ground, but sometimes he does. He’s very good at reading the defense and putting him where he needs to be. So it helps you understand who he is.” is, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll automatically be successful just because he’s so good.”

Eric D. Williams has been covering the NFL for more than a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.

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