AFC West

Tom Brady set the standard for quarterbacks during his NFL career, with seven Super Bowl titles and all-time records in passing yards (89,214) and passing touchdowns (649), among many others legendary accomplishments.

But given enough time, Patrick Mahomes might just give him a run for his money in the G.O.A.T. conversation.

"He's just gotta do it for a long time," former NFL wide receiver Julian Edelman said on The Dan Patrick Show Tuesday when asked what Mahomes would have to do to surpass Brady. "I mean, he's on pace. This is remarkable. If he goes out and does three in a row—in a salary-cap era—you can't say much. I'm as big of a Tom Brady guy as there is, and the only difference is the longevity. Tom had like three careers."

Mahomes, 29, already has three titles, five Super Bowl appearances and two MVP awards (Brady had three in his career). He's already over a third of the way (32,352 yards, 245 touchdowns) to surpassing Brady's record for passing yards and passing touchdowns.

Mahomes has played eight seasons already. Brady played 23. It's possible that many of Brady's records will never be touched, simply because most players don't play well into their 40s.

The ultimate measuring stick, of course, is championships, and Mahomes has the chance to do something that no other player in NFL history has done before—win three straight Super Bowls. He'll have to get through a tough Philadelphia Eagles defense to do it, but it would be the sort of legacy-defining accomplishment that would give him a real leg to stand on in the G.O.A.T. debate.

Looking to become the first team to win three consecutive Super Bowls, the Kansas City Chiefs showed off the jerseys they will wear against the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 9 with a hype video and series of pictures.

As the designated road team, the Chiefs will wear their white jerseys with the Super Bowl 59 patch on the right side of the chest.

The Chiefs have become so synonymous with the Super Bowl that they might as well just play the entire season with the patch on their jerseys.

This will mark the second time that Kansas City has worn its white jerseys in the Super Bowl since 2019. The only other time was two years ago when the Chiefs and Eagles played for the first time.

The Chiefs won that game 38-35 on Harrison Butker's 27-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining. Of course, the field goal was set up by a holding penalty by Eagles cornerback James Bradberry against Juju Smith-Schuster on a third-and-8.

If you are a superstitious person, the Chiefs' playoff losses since Patrick Mahomes became their starting quarterback in 2018 came when they were wearing red jerseys. They lost at home in the AFC Championship Game to the New England Patriots (2018) and Cincinnati Bengals (2021), then lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneeers in Super Bowl 55 (2020).

As always seems to be the case, Mahomes has the Chiefs playing their best football at the right time. They scored more than 30 points in a game for the first time all season in the AFC Championship Game win over the Buffalo Bills.

The Eagles could present them with a unique challenge because of how dominant they are on the ground. Saquon Barkley already has the seventh-most rushing yards ever in a single postseason (442).

Philadelphia's 55-point outburst against the Washington Commanders in the NFC Championship Game set a new NFL record for most points by a team in a conference title game.

The last team to score at least 50 points in a playoff game was the Chiefs in 2019. They went on to win the Super Bowl.

We will find out which team has more answers when the Chiefs and Eagles meet to determine the champion of the 2024 NFL season at the Caesars Superdome on Feb. 9.

Pete Carroll will continue to teach a course at USC after accepting the Las Vegas Raiders' head coaching job, according to TMZ Sports.

Carroll became a co-instructor for the class after his 14-year head coaching career with the Seattle Seahawks came to an end after the 2023 season. The course, which is called "The Game Is Life," focuses on personal development post-grad for senior students (via TMZ Sports).

The class is only taught in the spring so it shouldn't affect his preparation during training camp as well as the 2025 regular season, per Ryan Kartje of the Los Angeles Times.

Las Vegas announced the hiring of Carroll on Saturday.

ESPN's Adam Schefter noted that he signed a three-year contract with a fourth-year team option.

Carroll spent nine years as the Trojans' head coach prior to his Seahawks tenure. The 73-year-old coached at USC from 2001 through the 2009 season, winning two national championships with the school. One of the titles was later vacated.

The Raiders will be hoping that Carroll can bring a level of consistent success to the team, as they've made just one playoff appearance over the past eight seasons. Las Vegas struggled on both sides of the ball in 2024, owning the fourth-worst scoring offense as well as the eighth-worst scoring defense in the league.

While the Raiders navigate through their first offseason with Carroll, the head coach will also continue teaching a class at USC.

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll knows his top priority with his new team is to find a franchise quarterback, and he plans to take advantage of the best resource available to him.

During his introductory press conference on Monday, Carroll told reporters that the Raiders are "going to lean on" part-owner Tom Brady "as much as we possibly can for his insights" in the search for a quarterback of the future.

The Raiders went 4-13 in 2024 while rotating between quarterbacks Gardner Minshew, Aidan O'Connell and Desmond Ridder. Las Vegas will have the No. 6 pick in the 2025 NFL draft, so there's a chance it could miss out on top quarterback prospects like Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward if it doesn't trade up.

Carroll explained to reporters that he wouldn't pass up on the opportunity to figure out the quarterback position with Brady, who secured a five-percent ownership stake in the Raiders in October.

"It's our mission to build this football team up around the quarterback position. This isn't the only spot," Carroll said. "We happen to have the greatest of all time to help us, and to see clearly, and we're going to lean on Tom as much as we possibly can for his insights because nobody has the insights that he has. He's that unique."

Brady also works as Fox's lead NFL analyst. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated reported on Monday that the 47-year-old had some influence in the Raiders' hiring of Carroll, but he added that "he won't have a day-to-day presence in the organization, at least in the beginning" because his family still resides in Florida.

Still, Carroll said it would be a mistake to not pick Brady's brain, as the seven-time Super Bowl champion is one of the best quarterbacks to ever play football.

"Coach [Bill] Walsh taught me a long time ago that it's the hardest position in professional sports to play, so we need to make it as easy as possible. And we'll go about doing that by running the football, protecting him, taking care of the ball, playing great defense, and kicking the football when we want to kick it," Carroll said. "So, there's a lot that goes into this. But to think about how fortunate we are to have Tom Brady with us — it's just a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

New Las Vegas Raiders part-owner Tom Brady reportedly made his presence felt in the team's decision to hire Pete Carroll as its next head coach.

According to Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, a "few connected people" said early in the Raiders' head coaching search "not to underestimate Brady's own experiences in the search—and how the respect he had for Carroll had always been apparent." Brady and the Raiders reportedly viewed Carroll as "someone who could energize the building and give the team an identity."

Brady, who also works as Fox's lead NFL color analyst, joined the Raiders' ownership group with a five-percent stake in October. The seven-time Super Bowl champion is reportedly expected to ease his way into his role with Las Vegas.

"Brady's influence will be there, but his family is in Florida, so he won't have a day-to-day presence in the organization, at least in the beginning," Breer stated.

The 73-year-old Carroll will be the oldest coach in NFL history when he takes the field for the Raiders in 2025. Breer noted that he will try to add a clear successor to his staff to create some stability for Las Vegas upon his eventual retirement.

"In preparing to try to land a coaching job over the past year, Carroll talked a lot about finding an assistant or two to put on his staff whom he felt could succeed him (like Bruce Arians did with Todd Bowles and Leftwich in Tampa)," Breer explained. "I don't know who those guys will be, but it does seem like that'll be part of his plan."

Kansas City Chiefs star defensive tackle Chris Jones drew comparisons to Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Randy Moss for his impact during the Chiefs' 32-29 win over the Buffalo Bills in Sunday's AFC Championship Game.

"The whole first half is long drives against K.C., and then in the final 10 minutes, Kansas City gets the stops," a coach from a rival team told Mike Sando of The Athletic. "It is classic with Chris Jones, too. He is a modern-day Randy Moss. He'll play when he wants to play, and when he wants to play, look out."

The Bills' offense was able to put together several impressive drives to open the game, taking a 22-21 lead with just under three minutes remaining in the third quarter.

Buffalo scored just one more touchdown during the rest of the contest, turning the ball over on downs twice.

Jones didn't register a sack against the Bills, but he still recorded a tackle and two quarterback hits.

When the 30-year-old is healthy and engaged, it isn't an exaggeration to call him one of the NFL's top defensive players. He's earned Pro Bowl nods six consecutive seasons and received AP All-Pro First Team honors for the third straight year in 2024.

While Jones' five regular-season sacks were his lowest amount since the 2016 season, his ability to consistently dominate at the line of scrimmage has been crucial for a Chiefs squad that owned the NFL's fourth-best scoring defense and No. 8 run defense during the regular season.

Jones also racked up 38 pressures, 20 quarterback hits, nine tackles for loss and one forced fumble in 15 starts during his 2024 campaign.

He helped the Chiefs' defense step up in the fourth quarter on Sunday, as Kansas City secured its fifth trip to the Super Bowl in six years.

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins spoke up for teammate Patrick Mahomes as the star quarterback is increasingly becoming the villain of the NFL thanks to his team's on-field success.

"Everybody has to choose a team they go against or that they feel is getting help from someone," Hopkins said to The Athletic's Michael Silver. "Everybody has to choose a villain, and it's easy to choose someone who's winning as much as our guy is.

"How can Patrick Mahomes be the villain? The same way Tom Brady could be, and the same way Michael Jordan was. Why do people still talk about MJ pushing off (before hitting the game-winning shot over Bryon Russell in the 1997-98 NBA Finals) almost 30 years later? Because he's one of the greatest ever to do it, and when he won his sixth, (some) people were tired of watching him win."

This is the arc that accompanies almost any legend with multiple titles.

Tom Brady and the New England Patriots were plucky underdogs when they beat the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI. A few championships later and fans had grown fatigued by the Patriots' dynasty.

The same was true for Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, who sparked conversations about whether their dominance in the 1990s was healthy for the NBA as a whole.

With Mahomes, we're getting there faster than usual because he's already ahead of the pace Brady set.

The 15-time Pro Bowler had three Super Bowl rings by his age-27 season, but his last four didn't come until after he had turned 37. Mahomes is one win away from a fourth title before he's 30.

Plenty of otherwise neutral observers will be rooting for the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 9 in Super Bowl LIX, if only to see somebody else come out on top for a change.

Even if the Eagles upset the two-time reigning champs, Mahomes will continue to cast a large shadow over the rest of the NFL.

Kansas City Chiefs star tight end Travis Kelce praised Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen following the Chiefs' 32-29 win over the Bills in the AFC Championship Game on Sunday.

"I f--king love that guy," Kelce said, per Michael Silver of The Athletic. "He's one of the most awesome competitors I've gone against, and I have so much respect for him. I'd rather play him in the Super Bowl, but we can't, so the AFC Championship it is."

Sunday's clash marked the fourth playoff meeting between Kansas City and Buffalo since the start of the 2020 season, with two of the games occurring with a conference championship on the line. The Chiefs have won all four games.

Kelce had a relatively quiet night against the Bills on Sunday, catching two of his four targets for 19 yards.

As for Allen, he finished 22-of-34 for 237 yards and two touchdowns without throwing an interception. He also picked up 39 rush yards on 11 attempts.

Allen has helped guide the Bills to the playoffs for six consecutive seasons, but they haven't been able to make a Super Bowl appearance. The three-time Pro Bowl passer wrapped up another strong year in 2024, completing 63.6 percent of his throws for 3,731 yards and 28 touchdowns to go along with a career-low six interceptions.

The Chiefs will be playing in their fifth Super Bowl in six years, while the Bills are still searching for their first opportunity to compete for a Lombardi Trophy since the 1993 season.

Kelce still expressed his admiration for Allen following the latest playoff battle between the two AFC foes, though.

Kansas City Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes is "sorry it had to be us" after once again serving as a playoff roadblock to the Buffalo Bills and quarterback Josh Allen.

"I always feel for him—he's a great player, an amazing competitor and an awesome dude who I respect so much," Mahomes said to The Athletic's Michael Silver. "I'm sorry it had to be us. But, you know, we compete, and someone has to win."

Mahomes went on to call Allen a "friend" when speaking to The MMQB's Albert Breer.

"I have so much respect for Josh. I feel like he's a friend," he said. "You have to beat the best in order to get to the Super Bowl. He's one of the best quarterbacks in the league. He's up there in the top four, five in quarterbacks. I know I was going to have to play one of these guys. The AFC's loaded. And it's not just me. He played his tail off today."

The Chiefs bested the Bills 32-29 on Sunday night in the AFC title game, an outcome that's unfortunately becoming a common refrain for Buffalo. Kansas City has ended the team's season in 2020, 2021, 2023 and now 2024. Three of those games were decided by one score as well.

Sports are a results-based business.

It doesn't really matter that Allen has thrown for 1,039 yards and nine touchdowns to one interception in his four playoff meetings with the Chiefs. Over time, more and more people will also forget how he nearly pulled off a miracle to extend Buffalo's final drive Sunday night.

Instead, the big takeaway from the AFC championship is that Mahomes still has Allen's number when it matters the most.

The Bills have beaten the Chiefs four straight times in the regular season. Earlier this year, they beat Kansas City 30-21 at home, a game that might've cemented Allen's MVP candidacy more than any other. His 26-yard touchdown run with a little more than two minutes left sealed the victory.

Come the playoffs, however, the Chiefs continue to find the right formula.

Mahomes is signed with Kansas City through the 2031 season and it's hard to picture him playing for any other team. If Allen wants to taste the Super Bowl at least once in his career, maybe he should consider requesting a trade to the NFC.