Patrick Mahomes does it again as Chiefs quarterback’s legend hits another level

Super Bowl LVIII was about nerves, at first, and then it was about Travis Kelce embarrassing himself by confronting his coach.

Then it was about the San Francisco 49ers’ remarkable talent, until it was about a great young kicker’s blocked extra point. And then it was about uncharacteristic mistakes that seemed to cost each team the title.

In the end, as if scripted, this Super Bowl came down to Patrick Mahomes chasing history, and again catching it.

You can’t yet prove that Mahomes is the greatest quarterback in NFL history. Tom Brady’s résumé still reigns.

But I would have taken Mahomes over Brady before Super Bowl LVIII, and that opinion was only emboldened by Mahomes’ last two gotta-have-em drives that led to the Kansas City Chiefs’ 25-22 victory and second consecutive title.

Despite a slow start, just three points at halftime and an offense that often looked overmatched by the 49ers’ stout defensive front, Mahomes led the Chiefs to a late, game-tying field goal and then the overtime touchdown pass that made Kansas City the first team since 2005 to win consecutive Super Bowls.

Mahomes’ final numbers: 34 completions on 46 passes for 333 yards and two touchdowns with an interception and nine rushes for 66 yards.

He was great when he needed to be great. At 28 years old, he has won three Super Bowls in four tries.

Immediately after the longest game in Super Bowl history, and the seventh-longest game in league history, CBS sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson asked Mahomes whether the Chiefs qualified as a dynasty.

“It’s the start of one,” Mahomes said. “We’re not done. We’ve got a young team. We’re going to keep this thing going.”

As a 29-year-old, Mahomes will try to become the first quarterback to win three Super Bowls in a row.

Mahomes is accustomed to comeback victories, but this comeback felt different. The Chiefs looked like the lesser team for much of the game.

Then Mahomes provided a few reminders about himself and his two most important coaches — coach Andy Reid and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo.

To put it inelegantly, they figure stuff out, and they figure stuff out fast.

They were up against 49ers coach and offensive wizard Kyle Shanahan and a star-studded 49ers front seven.

When they most needed to, they drove almost effortlessly for clutch scores.

Which is what Mahomes has been doing all of his career, and the Chiefs have been doing all postseason.

They went 11-6 in the regular season, losing games creatively and winding up as the No. 3 seed in the AFC.

They won one home game in the postseason, against the sixth-seeded Miami Dolphins, then embarked on the most difficult possible schedule.

They defeated the second-seeded Bills at Buffalo. They defeated the top-seeded Ravens at Baltimore. They defeated the top-seeded 49ers in the Super Bowl at Las Vegas.

Brady, winner of six Super Bowls, still has the best resume of any quarterback in NFL history.

I’ll take Mahomes.

Mahomes can do everything Brady ever did and a dozen things Brady couldn’t.

Both won with a variety of supporting casts and offensive philosophies.

The difference between the two is that when a play breaks down, Mahomes can instantly become the Chiefs’ best runner, or perhaps the most effective scrambler in NFL history.

Mahomes has now won Super Bowls with a fearsome deep passing game featuring Tyreek Hill and by scoring 38 points to outdo Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles, and now by willing a flawed team to yet another comeback victory in a big game.

The 49ers’ Brock Purdy is a very good NFL quarterback who put his team in position to win, but he will have to wait for another opportunity to prove he possesses the kind of magic that makes a quarterback a legend.

For much of the night, the Super Bowl felt like a dud. The ads were boring. The game was boring. Neither offense could find traction, and only record-setting field goals kept this from feeling like bad soccer.

In the end, the Chiefs won again, and Mahomes won his third Super Bowl MVP award, and what else did you really expect?

The Star Tribune did not send the writer of this article to the game. This was written using a broadcast, interviews and other material.