Travis Kelce gave his final verdict on the quarterback debate between his teammate Patrick Mahomes and future Hall of Famer Tom Brady.
On Saturday, the Chiefs’ playoff journey in search of their third straight title at home after a 15-2 season.
Ahead of of their divisional playoff showdown against the Houston Texans, Kelce gave his offense general praises and therefore gave his answer to the Brady-Mahomes question.
‘It’s been such a pleasure,’ Kelce told Chris Berman in a sit-down interview with ESPN. ‘He’s every bit of a superstar off the field as he is on the field. I consider him family. There’s one common denominator from the Chiefs my entire career and that’s Andy Reid, but this thing really took off when Patrick Mahomes got here.
‘I know everybody knows that, but what I see in the building, his leadership, his ability to relate to everybody and motivate everybody, and be accountable, it’s unique, and it’s like nothing else,’ Kelce continued.
‘He’s the greatest to ever do it. You can’t change my mind, otherwise.’
While Mahomes has plenty of chasing to do with Brady’s accolades, the Chiefs star could get close to the consensus greatest of all time given his current trajectory.
At 29, Mahomes is already a three-time Super Bowl champion, three-time Super Bowl MVP, and two-time NFL MVP. Another postseason win will tie Mahomes with Joe Montana for the second-most by a quarterback in NFL history.
Given a lot of Brady’s success, such as his fourth Super Bowl, which came when he was 37, Mahomes has plenty of time to inch closer and potentially overtake the seven-time champion.
Kelce’s praises for Mahomes came days after the quarterback publicly professed his faith in the tight end as they approached the postseason.
‘The greats, they step up in the playoffs, and it’s just higher intensity,’ Mahomes said of Kelce during a press conference on Tuesday.
He continued, ‘The best players and the best leaders step up and make the best plays, and he’s done that, so I expect the same from him going into this playoffs.’
In his tenth year with Kansas City, Kelce’s numbers have fallen significantly from previous campaigns. While he’s tallied 97 receptions, four more than last year, the tight end is seeing career-low yards (823) and touchdowns (3).
When asked about Kelce’s mentality going into the playoffs, Mahomes shared how the tight end ‘resonates with the entire team’ and ‘gets everybody to play their best football.’
‘And that’s what it takes in order to win championships,’ Mahomes added of Kelce’s winning mentality.
The Chiefs hope for a repeat of Kelce’s postseason form last year when he tallied two touchdowns against Buffalo in the divisional playoffs and another against Baltimore in the AFC title game.
While Kelce has not been the best version of himself, Mahomes’ title-winning form has continued with 392 completions for 581 attempts. He also threw for 3,928 yards and 26 touchdowns.
The reigning champions are coming fresh off a bye week as they gear up to face the Texans who upset the Chargers, 32-12, in a wild card defensive masterclass.
