Legacies are often defined by championships. Tom Brady is considered the GOAT largely because of the fact that he's won more Super Bowls than any NFL team. Brady is still the greatest, but Chiefs' quarterback Patrick Mahomes, by virtue of Kansas City's 38-35 win over the Eagles in Super Bowl LVII, has taken real estate on the Mount Rushmore of Super Bowl era quarterbacks.
Mahomes is now one of 13 starting quarterbacks with multiple Super Bowl wins to his credit. The 27-year-old joins a list of some of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, a list that continues to be headlined by Brady, who won his last Super Bowl at Mahomes' expense two years ago.
Mahomes isn't the GOAT (yet), but his early career success has catapulted him near the top of the list of Super Bowl era quarterbacks with multiple Super Bowl wins. Here's a complete look at the list and where Mahomes fits.
1. Tom Brady (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX, XLIX, LI, LIII, LV)
By every measurement, Brady is the greatest quarterback -- and arguably the greatest player -- in NFL history. The recently-retired star walked away with seven Super Bowl wins, five Super Bowl MVPs and 10 Super Bowl starts. He also owns just about every significant career milestone for a quarterback.
2. Peyton Manning (XLI, 50)
Like Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, Manning would have won more titles had he not played in the same era as Brady. The fact that Palmer had to face arguably the greatest golfer in history did not diminish his legacy, nor does Manning sharing the same era with Brady take away from his greatness. Manning, after all, is the owner of a record five league MVP trophies. He was also the first quarterback to win Super Bowls with multiple franchises. Manning was also 3-1 against Brady in AFC championship games.
3. Joe Montana (XVI, XIX, XXIII, XXIV)
Montana raised the bar as far as big game quarterbacks are concerned. He was the second quarterback to win four Super Bowls and was the first player to win three Super Bowl MVP awards. Joe Cool never threw an interception in the Super Bowl while out-playing Hall of Famers Dan Marino and John Elway in two of his Super Bowl wins.
Montana wasn't bad in the regular season, either, as he is the proud owner of back-to-back league MVP awards.
4. Patrick Mahomes (LIV, LVIII)
Mahomes, Brady and Montana are the only quarterbacks with multiple league and Super Bowl MVP trophies. In just six seasons as the Chiefs' starting quarterback, Mahomes has won two league MVPs, two Super Bowl MVPs and also has a passing title to boot. He's also led the NFL in touchdown passes on multiple occasions.
Mahomes' 2022 season is what truly puts him so high on this list. He is just one of seven players to win league and Super Bowl MVP in the same season, a season that also saw him leading the NFL in passing yards and touchdown passes.
5. John Elway (XXXII, XXXIII)
Elway has been surpassed by Mahomes, but he is still pretty high up on this list. The league's MVP in 1987, Elway carried good but not great Denver teams to three Super Bowls over a four-year span in the late '80s only to fall by sizable margins in each Super Bowl. Elway finally got over the hump once the Broncos built a championship team around him late in his career. He capped off his career with an MVP performance in Super Bowl XXXIII, his final game.
6. Terry Bradshaw (IX, X, XIII, XIV)
Bradshaw remains the only quarterback to win back-to-back Super Bowls twice. He's also the only quarterback to win four Super Bowls in a six-year span.
Nicknamed the Blonde Bomber because of his deadly deep ball accuracy, Bradshaw won league and Super Bowl MVP honors in 1978 after leading the NFL in touchdown passes. He also called his own plays while leading a Steelers offense that featured four other Hall of Fame players.
7. Roger Staubach (VI, XII)
He never won league MVP, but Captain America did everything else during his Hall of Fame career. Staubach, who didn't become the Cowboys' starting quarterback until he was 29, quickly made up for lost time. He won Super Bowl VI while not losing a single start during his first season as the Cowboys' starting quarterback. Staubach won another Super Bowl six years later and led the Cowboys to two other Super Bowls during his career.
8. Bart Starr (I, II)
The first Super Bowl MVP, Starr also won NFL MVP during the 1966 season. The only quarterback to win three consecutive NFL titles, Starr also took home the MVP of Super Bowl II. He won five titles as the Packers' starting quarterback during the 1960s.
9. Troy Aikman (XXVII, XXVIII, XXX)
Aikman played with machine like efficiency while playing an integral role in the Cowboys' 1990s dynasty. He won Super Bowl XXVII MVP honors and was the first quarterback to win three Super Bowls over a four-year span. He won 90 regular season games during the '90s and went 11-4 in playoff games.
10. Ben Roethlisberger (XL, XLIII)
The youngest quarterback to win the Super Bowl, Roethlisberger authored one of the greatest drives in Super Bowl history en route to winning his second championship ring. Roethlisberger, who started in three Super Bowls during his career, is top-10 in NFL history in passing yards, passing touchdowns, wins and game-winning drives. He also has two passing titles to his credit.
11. Eli Manning (XLII, XLVI)
Manning will likely be voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame one day on the strength of what he did in Super Bowls. Manning led the Giants to an historic upset of the previously undefeated Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. The MVP of that game, Manning won his second Super Bowl MVP four years later after pulling off similar heroics in another Giants' win over Brady's Patriots in the big game.
12. Jim Plunkett (XV, XVIII)
The former No. 1 overall pick toiled on bad teams for years before an injury to a teammate presented him with a final chance to salvage his career. Plunkett made the most of his opportunity, as he won MVP honors in Super Bowl XV while helping the Raiders become the first wild card team to win the Super Bowl. Plunkett led the Raiders to a second Super Bowl upset win three years later.
13. Bob Griese (VII, VIII)
While more individually decorated, Griese is behind Plunkett largely because he was asked to do much less during his team's Super Bowl wins. That being said, Griese was still a Hall of Fame player who made history as the first quarterback to start in three consecutive Super Bowls. He injected life into the '72 Dolphins after Don Shula benched Earl Morrall during the AFC title game. Griese made several key plays in that game as Miami went onto complete the NFL's only perfect season.
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