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LAS VEGAS — Inspired by the equation of longevity plus success Tom Brady used to play quarterback into his mid-40s, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes plans on going deep.

Deep into his 40s, that is.

Mahomes wouldn’t single out a target retirement age because he wants to “play as long as they’ll let me play,” and thinks another 15 years is truly possible.

“Brady did it, some other guys have done it, I’m going to try to do it as well,” Mahomes said. “I don’t want to play until I’m hurting the team. If I’m still having success and still loving it, that’s the biggest thing.”

Mahomes starts his fourth Super Bowl at age 28 on Sunday when Kansas City meets the San Francisco 49ers in a runback of the Lombardi fight between the same teams after the 2019 season.

That puts him at a pace all his own, and a full two years ahead of Brady’s track. Brady started his fourth Super Bowl at age 30, winning a total of seven with 10 appearances.

The Chiefs are underdogs to the 49ers this time, and Mahomes said he will count rings one at a time so as to avoid getting ahead of himself or becoming complacent with constant championship-level performances.

“I mean, I’m not even close to halfway (to seven Super Bowl rings),” Mahomes said. “I haven’t put a lot of thought into it. Your goal is to be the best player you can be. I know I’m blessed to be around a lot of great players around me. Right now, it’s doing whatever I can to beat a great 49ers team and try to get that third ring. And then, you ask me that question in like 15 years, I’ll see if I can get close to seven. Seven seems like a long way away still.”

Brady was remarkably healthy in his 23 NFL seasons before retiring for good in February 2023. He took a mulligan on his first retirement a year after a Super Bowl win with the Buccaneers over Mahomes and the Chiefs.

Brady remains the standard at quarterback by every statistical measure. He holds NFL records for wins by a quarterback (251), Super Bowl wins, passing yards (89,214) and passing touchdowns (649) during his career with the New England Patriots (2000-19) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2020-22).

With seven seasons in the books, Mahomes has 33,226 passing yards (including 4,802 postseason) and 258 TD passes (39 in the playoffs).

Mahomes is 2-1 in three Super Bowl appearances.

–By Jeff Reynolds, Field Level Media