Blaine Gabbert sits in an exclusive spot among NFL backup quarterbacks.
Prior to joining the Chiefs in April to serve as Patrick Mahomes’s backup, Gabbert spent three seasons as Tom Brady’s backup with the Buccaneers. The veteran signal caller was privy to watching greatness in Brady—who won his final Super Bowl in Tampa Bay—and now enters a Kansas City franchise fresh off a Super Bowl LVII victory.
As the 33-year-old prepares for his 13th NFL season in Kansas City, Gabbert told reporters that Mahomes and Brady share very similar mindsets in their preparation to play at an elite level.
“They’re maniacal perfectionists,” Gabbert told reporters, per ProFootballTalk. “And I mean that in the most endearing way possible. They’re the two best, in my opinion, ever to play the game. To see the similarities, how they operate in the meeting room, on the practice field. They’re completely different players, as we all know, but the way they approach the game, on and off the football field is the exact same.”
While Mahomes does not have the mammoth accolades that Brady has accrued in his career—seven Super Bowls, five Super Bowl MVPs, three NFL MVPs and 15 Pro Bowls—the stats and production from the 27-year-old suggest that he is destined for similar greatness.
In six seasons, the two-time NFL MVP has won two Super Bowls and two Super Bowl MVPs while earning five Pro Bowl selections. Brady retired among the NFL’s greatest of all time. It appears that Mahomes is tracking in that direction.
