Patrick Mahomes’ pursuit of Tom Brady’s GOAT status just took a major hit

NEW ORLEANS — A few years ago, veteran NFL QB Chad Henne cautioned me against making comparisons between Tom Brady and Patrick Mahomes any time in the near future.

Henne was right. It was way too soon, even with Mahomes on a torrid pace in Super Bowl appearances. We can talk about whether Mahomes is in the same conversation as the GOAT, who has seven Super Bowl rings. But that’s all it is: chatter. It’s not meaningful. There’s no legitimacy to the argument. Mahomes remains distantly behind Brady.

And on Sunday, Mahomes’ pursuit of Brady took a hit.

To be clear, I’m not saying Mahomes’ legacy took a hit. Super Bowl LIX was more about squandered opportunity.

The Chiefs’ 40-22 loss took a fourth Super Bowl win off the table (for now). But more importantly, the Eagles took a three-peat off the table.

“It hurts. It’s gonna hurt for a while,” Mahomes told reporters after the game. “But how can you respond from it? How can you get better? How can you not just be satisfied with getting here? That starts with me.”

Mahomes has three Super Bowl wins, behind Joe Montana and Terry Bradshaw (four). I can comfortably project Mahomes will finish — at least — as the second-greatest quarterback of all time.

But eclipsing Brady? Man, that three-peat would’ve helped.

When looking at the marathon of Mahomes’ pursuit of Brady, we’ll need to think about whether Mahomes might distinguish himself — in the event he gets the same number or fewer Super Bowls than Brady.

Keep in mind that Brady beat Mahomes head-to-head in the Super Bowl (and, before that, the AFC Championship Game). Brady was in the twilight of his career but still not far off his peak. Mahomes was just getting started. But, again, that win for Brady is another bullet point on his résumé for GOAT.