Super Bowl 55: Tom Brady passing the torch to Patrick Mahomes

With Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady in the twilight of his legendary career, Super Bowl 55 gives him the chance to pass the GOAT torch to Patrick Mahomes.

Win or lose, Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady is going to add yet another layer of unprecedented legacy to his storybook career.

Brady long since encapsulated the GOAT moniker for the greatest signal-caller of all time, and some would even put him high in the discussion for the best football player ever. He could end up receiving his seventh Super Bowl ring when the Bucs face off against another top-end quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, and the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 55 on Feb. 7.

And no matter what the results of the game end up being, what fans are going to be witnessing is the potential passing of the GOAT torch from one legend to another.

Mahomes, who was the game MVP in the Chiefs win over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl 54, is writing a legacy not unlike that of Brady when the latter was just beginning to blossom as an NFL superstar.

Not surprisingly, Mahomes is embracing the moment.

“I mean, to go out there and to have the chance to repeat, and get to do it against the best, it’s something special,” Mahomes told reporters leading up to the Super Bowl. “I’m excited for the opportunity.”

The 43-year-old Tom Brady and 25-year-old Mahomes couldn’t be any more different outside the fact they’re at the very top of NFL quarterbacking. Brady, of course, won a Super Bowl in his first full year as a starter. That led to an insane dynasty with the New England Patriots in which Brady saw nine Super Bowl appearances.

And with Mahomes, he already won a ring in his second full year of starting. In his third year as a starter, he’s poised to get another while putting himself on track to be the league’s next GOAT in Brady’s wake.

It’ll be a lot to live up to.

Tom Brady won’t pass the torch to Patrick Mahomes easily

Few in the league are as competitive as Brady. Winning is the ultimate goal for him. Not setting passing records or getting the individual accolades. And while it’s been pretty clear Brady’s brief time so far with the Buccaneers has been far more pleasant and enjoyable than the robotic and businesslike atmosphere he experienced in New England, that same focus and dedication to his craft has spilled over to the rest of his teammates in Tampa Bay.

The Bucs are in the Super Bowl because of it.

While Mahomes and the Chiefs are easily the most formidable opponent Brady and the Buccaneers have faced this season — the Chiefs already beat Tampa Bay 41-27 back in Week 12 — Mahomes clearly understands not to underestimate the reigning GOAT.

So does Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, who is becoming a similar equivalent to Mahomes as Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was to Brady in the early 2000s.

“You just better be careful with [Tom Brady],” Reid added. “Because he can be a force of nature in games of this magnitude — like a championship game or certainly a Super Bowl — if he decides you have little to no respect for him.”

There’s no questioning Mahomes has a ton of respect for Brady. It’s Brady’s shoes Mahomes wants to fill.

Even with a Buccaneers win in Super Bowl 55, Brady will be passing along that torch to Mahomes in some way or another as the former rides out the twilight of his career and the latter continues to build what looks to be a GOAT-like résumé.