The Clutch Gene: Why Patrick Mahomes is the NFL's greatest closer since Tom Brady

Eric Williams

NFL reporter

San Francisco 49ers edge rusher Nick Bosa said it best: “What makes Patrick Mahomes the top quarterback in the NFL is his ability to hold off teams while making difficult plays look easy.”

“He's able to move the ball long distances very quickly, so you don't need as much spacing,” Bosa told reporters when asked what makes Mahomes the best. “And then the way he creates plays. He’s able to pump fake people and run for first downs when you really need them.”

“His running ability is kind of underestimated. He is stocky and therefore difficult to defeat. And he makes good decisions.”

Bosa will be one of the key players on defense responsible for slowing down Mahomes when San Francisco hosts the Kansas City Chiefs this Sunday (4:25 p.m. ET) in a nationally televised contest on FOX, with Tom Brady the Will provide analysis for this game – the first time he has called a game involving Mahomes.

It will be a rematch of last year's Super Bowl, where Mahomes put his clutch genes on full display as he led Kansas City to an overtime victory. But it will be more than that, especially with Brady present in the broadcast booth. In some ways, it will be a passing of the torch, as Mahomes has clearly taken over Brady's title as the NFL's best closer.

Brady may be the GOAT, but when it comes to clutch genes, Mahomes has him covered. Both QBs are known for their ability to close games in the fourth quarter, both in the regular season and postseason. Just look at the data, courtesy of FOX Sports research.

Fourth Quarter Comebacks: Not only does Mahomes have the best record in NFL history (13-10) when trailing in the fourth quarter, he is also the only quarterback with one Winning record in this situation (at least 10 games).

However, Brady's 31 total regular season wins by the start of the fourth quarter are the most in NFL history. Even more impressive, Brady has 19 regular-season wins with two minutes left, the second-most of any QB since 2000. He has three two-minute comebacks in the playoffs, the most since 2000.

Late touchdowns: Mahomes has eight touchdown drives when trailing at any point in the playoffs. That's tied for seventh most since 2000 and third-most among active QBs (Russell Wilson has 13, Aaron Rodgers has 11). He also has six TD passes in the playoffs when trailing at any point in the fourth quarter, third-most among active QBs (Rodgers has eight, Wilson has seven).

Game-decisive drives: Brady's 14 game-winning drives in the fourth quarter of the playoffs are the most of any quarterback in NFL history. Mahomes is tied for second with John Elway with six.

So it's clear that both men carry the clutch gene, and time will tell which signal generator ends up with more of it. But is there any way Mahomes is already surpassing Brady?

“The only thing I could say that could potentially make him (Mahomes) better than Tom Brady in the end is that he can extend his plays to a whole other level,” Rob Gronkowski said on his “Dudes On Dudes” podcast former New England Patriots teammate Julian Edelman. “But he will never be better than Tom. And even if he was, I’ll never say that because I love Tom.”

“But the way he can extend plays is what makes the Kansas City Chiefs so good. He's about to be sacked and then he just rolls out, spins off a defender and throws it to Travis Kelce or Tyreek Hill when he had him or some nameless seventh-rounder.

Much like Brady owned the NFL, Mahomes and the Chiefs also dominated San Francisco. Mahomes is 4-0 against the 49ers in his career, including two Super Bowl victories. He has completed 68% of his passes for an average of 364.5 yards per game, with 11 touchdowns and four interceptions for a passer rating of 104.5 in those games.

“Fifteen is a heck of a player,” San Francisco receiver Deebo Samuel acknowledged on his podcast this week. “He will do everything possible at any moment. I don’t like remembering Super Bowls, but my rookie year we were up there, and Pat Mahomes just does things that Pat Mahomes does.”

“And the two-minute drill in the last Super Bowl is all about Pat Mahomes doing Pat Mahomes things. You have to give him your flowers.”

While Mahomes was a beast with the game, this season was statistically his worst in all five games of his career. Only Will Levis (seven) has more interceptions than Mahomes (six), and his passer rating of 88.9 is the lowest at any point in his seven-year NFL career.

But don't tell San Francisco defensive coordinator Nick Sorensen that.

“No matter how many times you played against Mahomes, it’s still going to be hard,” Sorenson said. “It helps a little bit because you understand the preparation for him. But he’s so difficult because he doesn’t always do the same thing.”

“The arm angle is never the same. He doesn't always plant his feet, but sometimes he does. He's really good at reading the defense and throwing it where he needs it. So it helps you understand who he is, but it doesn't necessarily mean that because he's so good that you're automatically going to be successful.”

Eric D. Williams has covered and covered the NFL for more than a decade Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.

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