Quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady landed far apart when NBC analyst Chris Simms compared all-time QBs by their peak years rather than full-career success on The Dan Patrick Show.

Simms acknowledged Brady as the top quarterback for full-career success. But his prime-only rankings told a different story, elevating Mahomes to No. 2 while Brady fell to No. 9.

“I think Tom Brady's the man, and Tom Brady in some ways is the most overrated guy, and the underrated guy in some ways,” Simms said. “But when I was in buildings in my prime, I just will tell you the building was way more on edge with Peyton Manning coming to town rather than, oh, it was just Tom Brady.”

Simms believed quarterbacks such as Manning and Mahomes had carried a bigger part of their offenses during their best years. He said teams built around their special ability almost immediately, while New England relied more on defense and its running game during the early part of Brady’s career.

Mahomes, meanwhile, had already won three Super Bowl titles, two AP MVP awards, and three Super Bowl MVP awards, strengthening his case in the all-time quarterback debate.

“And he had great talent around him, just like you talked about. But Brady was afforded luxuries of the greatest pass protection of any quarterback of all time,” Simms said on the Dan Patrick Show on YouTube. That's not me. Those are any analytic site you look at."

Brady still had one of the strongest cases among quarterbacks. He led the league with 4,806 yards and 50 touchdowns during his 2007 MVP season, then again with 5,316 yards and 43 touchdowns at age 44.

However, Simms separated those huge seasons from Brady’s full body of work and believed other quarterbacks had reached a higher level during their peak years.

The comparison later took another turn when Mahomes turned to Brady for help with a knee injury.

Patrick Mahomes turned to Tom Brady for guidance during his knee rehab

Patrick Mahomes had asked Tom Brady for advice while recovering from a torn ACL and LCL in his left knee, using Brady’s past recovery as a guide. He discussed those talks on Friday at Chiefs training camp at Missouri Western State University.

Brady had torn the ACL and MCL in his left knee in 2008. He returned in 2009 and won Comeback Player of the Year.

“I talked to Tom (Brady) early in the process because he had the same injury, a very similar injury that I had,” Mahomes said at training camp as per the Kansas City Star.

Mahomes had also spoken with former Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu and veteran tight end Zach Ertz.

The Chiefs QB stayed in close contact with veteran tight end Ertz, who tore his ACL with Washington just one week before Mahomes suffered his own knee injury.

The two shared rehab videos and compared their progress, turning recovery into a friendly competition that helped keep both players motivated.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid later said Mahomes had received clearance to practice and would move forward day by day. Mahomes had aimed to get cleared for Kansas City’s first regular-season game.

Do you agree with evaluating QBs by their peak years instead of rings? Let us know what you think in the comments!

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Written by

Shreya Mishra

Edited by

Shubhi Rathore