It’s rare to see an athlete declared among the greatest to ever play when they’ve only just entered the prime of their career. But it’s fair to say that Patrick Mahomes stands on the precipice of such an honor and such a title.

Nine teams passed on the player who would go on to win two Super Bowls and two MVP titles in the 2017 NFL draft – with the Chicago Bears even trading up to select a different quarterback, Mitch Trubisky.

But since officially taking the reigns as the Chiefs starter in 2018, few have doubted Mahomes’ abilities as a quarterback or as a player. Now, it’s clear to see that he’s the face of the NFL and likely will be for years to come.

By season seven, Mahomes has a career record of 74-22, won two MVP awards, and has been to three Super Bowls – clinching Super Bowl LIV and Super Bowl LVII. He has the chance to add another to his belt this coming Sunday in a week where Mahomes is facing more grief than normal following his father’s arrest for DUI.

As Mahomes prepares to add to his Hall-of-Fame resume for the future, it’s fair to ask where he stands right now. DailyMail.com compares his success to four other GOAT-caliber players, sees where he stands against them, and wonders how a Super Bowl LVIII ring would compare to the Chiefs QB’s two others.

Patrick Mahomes has two Super Bowls. Would winning a third put him among the greatest?

 Dan Marino

To truly compare Mahomes’ current status, it’s fair to also ask ourselves what the status was of the other four quarterbacks he’s being compared to in the same number of years (seven, to be exact).

When Dan Marino was in his seventh year in the NFL, he had already led the Miami Dolphins to a Super Bowl XIX appearance and clinched the league’s MVP honors.

But Marino would never reach that point in his career again. While he put up a long and impressive enough career to finish eighth in all-time passing yards and seventh in all-time passing touchdowns, Marino is known as quite possibly the greatest NFL player to never win a Super Bowl.

It’s that lack of success in the playoffs that lands Marino in this spot. The Dolphins were always strong with him, but not strong enough.

By his second year in the NFL, Dan Marino had won an MVP and brought Miami to a Super Bowl

But while he put up a strong career in the regular season, he never reached that point again

 Peyton Manning

Peyton Manning’s arrival in the NFL signified a new era for the struggling Colts. For a franchise featuring legendary players like Johnny Unitas and John Mackey, Manning quickly became the greatest of all of them.

Flanked for most of his career by top receivers like Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne, Manning became a reliable threat in the regular season.

But his 2-2 record in Super Bowls meant that he struggled to truly cement himself as the definitive best of his era. He went 1-1 with the Colts and then went 1-1 again with the Denver Broncos. His loss in Super Bowl XLVIII was one of the most lopsided defeats in the history of the game.

He got one more shot in Super Bowl 50 – which he won and then promptly retired, going out on top as one of the best the game ever produced.

Peyton Manning went out on top – winning Super Bowl 50 in the final game of his career

Manning’s limited success in Super Bowls didn’t reduce his dominance over the AFC for years

 Joe Montana

For the accolades crowd, Joe Montana was the be-all-and-end-all best quarterback of all time until the next person on this list came along.

Montana’s legendary success in the playoffs was secured within his first seven seasons in the league, much like Mahomes. By that point, he had also won two Super Bowls and two Super Bowl MVPs.

‘Joe Cool’ would put up plenty of success in his career, tying Terry Bradshaw for what was the most Super Bowls ever won by a quarterback.

While he eventually saw his raw statistics betray him thanks to playing in an era where offenses were less pass-heavy than they are today, no one can doubt that Montana belongs on this list.

Until the person below came along, few were as successful in the playoffs as Joe Montana

Montana went a perfect 4-for-4 in Super Bowls – claiming his first by year 3 of his career

 Tom Brady

The man that all quarterbacks will be judged on in the future, Tom Brady’s career is the longest and most decorated of any in this list. Without a doubt, without an ounce of a question or hesitation: Brady is THE Greatest of All Time.

For the stats-oriented crowd he has more pass completions, attempts, yards, and touchdowns of anyone in both the regular season and the playoffs.

For the accolades crowd, no one has won more Super Bowls or Super Bowl MVP awards than ‘Touchdown Tom’. He’s won more playoff games than anyone and was the face of the greatest single dynasty in all of American sports.

This is the Mount Everest of this conversation. Much like how Brady was compared to Montana, Mahomes will be compared to Brady. While Tom never had the mobility or rushing ability of his Kansas City counterpart, Brady did more with lesser players throughout his entire career. Mahomes may be asked to do the same as his career progresses.

Tom Brady’s dominance across his career in the playoffs and record books won’t be denied

With seven Super Bowl titles, there may be no one who could ever catch ‘Touchdown Tom’

 Patrick Mahomes

So now, we arrive at the question this article is meant to ask: Where does Patrick Mahomes rank among the greatest of all time?

Comparing the statistics of his peers, Mahomes has clearly had the best seven-year start to his career of all the above. He has the most wins and the least losses while coming just behind Manning for most passing yards and Marino for most passing touchdowns. When it comes to the playoffs, Mahomes leads all categories but losses – with Montana and Brady only losing two playoff games by their seventh year.

So the question of who is a hotter quarterback to start their career is solved but the ‘all-time’ tag looms overhead.

Looking at the man directly above him proves how daunting a task knocking that crown off Brady’s head truly is. For reference, this season, Mahomes tossed for 4,183 yards but 27 passing TDs. Mahomes would need to pass for at least 4,061 each season for the next 15 seasons to surpass Brady’s all-time passing yards record. He’d need to pass for at least 30 touchdowns for the next 14 years to pass his all-time touchdowns record.

That’s not easy to replicate. Mahomes would have to play until he was 43 years old to do both those things. Respectfully, Mahomes’ mobile playing style does not favor that longevity. Mahomes would have to go through multiple changes to his receiving corps, not all of which will be as successful as his first one.

Mahomes has the chance to win more Super Bowl MVPs than any of the four GOATs above

The other caveat to the Brady-Mahomes debate lies in coaching and play calling. Brady essentially played his entire career barring two seasons under one head coach, Bill Belichick. His two other seasons included one title under an elite coach  in Bruce Arians. While the Patrick Mahomes-Andy Reid connection remains strong, there are questions THIS season over Reid’s longevity, let alone longevity for another 15 years. Even with Mahomes at the helm, there’s no guarantee the next Chiefs head coach will be as much a winner as this one.

But all of that being said, Mahomes doesn’t need to break Brady’s passing yards or passing TD record to be considered one of the GOATs. After all, in basketball, the Jordan-LeBron debate focuses on one man who has more titles than the other and another player who’s scored more points than anyone else. There’s validity to both arguments.

Frankly, Mahomes’ performance to start his career could be enough to eventually toss him high up in this list. This debate doesn’t even really consider that Mahomes’ legs add an extra element to his game that none of the four above QBs ever mastered.

But, still, this leads to one conclusion: Patrick Mahomes is far from being THE one true GOAT and he’s not in the top-five just yet. But a win in this Super Bowl will surely put him somewhere within the top-ten, which isn’t a bad spot considering he’s so early in his career.

Essentially, a crowded field clamoring for that final spot makes it hard to place Mahomes anywhere in the top-five at this point. For a test ask yourself this: if he retired after winning a third Super Bowl, would he be one of the top-five right now ahead of people like Aaron Rodgers, Terry Bradshaw, John Elway, Steve Young, or Drew Brees just to name a few? Even if there are a few individuals he could be ahead of, it’s hard to argue that his entire career right now puts him ahead of all five of them.

A third ring could put Mahomes as one of the ten-greatest ever, but not as a true GOAT just yet

Even if he wins a third Super Bowl, that likely wouldn’t be enough for automatic inclusion in the top-five. For the accolades-count crowd, winning a third Super Bowl would move him into a tie for fourth-most all-time with Troy Aikman, who respectfully, is not in many top-ten lists.

Mahomes certainly has the potential to crack the top-five down the line, and a third crown definitely gets him closer to that conversation. But to call him a true bonafide GOAT right now would be premature.

Rather, it’d be much simpler to enjoy the ride while we’re on it. If Mahomes wins this upcoming Super Bowl, there’s no doubt it’d be his hardest to earn. The six losses earned this year would likely make this title seem more redemptive than his first and his second.

While the San Francisco 49ers will prove to be a strong test, it will surely be a fulfilling end to a tough season that will see Mahomes continue to build what could become an all-time-great resume.