Even though this year has had a list of changes, life is still good in Tom Brady’s World. The 43-year-old quarterback has won his seventh Super Bowl title, snatching the Lombardi Trophy from the Kansas City Chiefs while helping the Tampa Bay Buccaneers win their first.

Winning is definitely not foreign for Brady. Spending 20 years as a starting quarterback for the New England Patriots, he won a total of nine American Football Conference championships and now seven Super Bowls, the most by any player. Leading a team for as long as he has made him not only a showstopping player but also a role model for the game of football and a legend in the sports world. 

A question that can be posed is how do you reach Brady’s level of success. Sure, he’s a great quarterback, but you just don’t become a seven-time Super Bowl winner overnight. 

“I think that Brady’s successful career could be traced back to his overall mentality,” junior Mourik Bhattacharjee said. “We see in other sports with legends such as Kobe Bryant and Cristiano Ronaldo that in order to be one of the best, you yourself have to believe it. Some may call it arrogance but it’s not that at all. His ruthless attitude and desire to win definitely played a huge role in his career.” 

At the beginning of the 2020-2021 season, Brady broke away from the Patriots, becoming a free agent and eventually joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In the past, the Buccaneers have not been close to being called a winning team, but thanks to Brady they secured 11 wins, a playoff spot and a ticket to their second Super Bowl. However, others believed that throughout this past season, the Kansas City Chiefs were a better team. 

Patrick Mahomes, the 25-year-old Kansas City starter, has already made a name for himself in the NFL and beyond. Not only does he already have a Super Bowl under his belt, but this past season shows star quality. Mahomes led the Chiefs to 14 wins and even had a record of scoring more than 23 points in 25 consecutive games. Plus, his partnership with tight end Travis Kelce and wide receiver Tyreek Hill is unmatched.

However, in the grand scheme of things, Mahomes is still an underdog compared to Brady.

“If we’re talking about the regular season, then definitely Mahomes,” senior Ben Freedman said.“He lights the NFL up like a Christmas tree on a weekly basis and he can turn the entire momentum of any game on a dime. But when it came to the playoffs, Brady turned the clock back and just kept completing passes left and right. There was no stopping that.”

Even though the Super Bowl is the most anticipated game of the year, this year’s matchup for some didn’t live up to the hype. 

“I thought the Super Bowl was incredibly disappointing,” Freedman said. “I really wanted it to be more competitive but the Chiefs just didn’t come out to play. The Bucs easily played better. They had Patrick Mahomes running on every single play, and the offense was as smooth as glass.”

With the Bucs defense overwhelming Mahomes, it was clear that the Chiefs didn’t live up to their usual top-tier standards. 

Even though Mahomes didn’t win a second consecutive Super Bowl, it doesn’t mean his career is toast. We’ll still see him tearing up the NFL or possibly making more Super Bowl appearances in the future. But it’s undeniable that Tom Brady, love him or hate him, is the greatest football player of all time.