Patrick Mahomes is tearing down great QB legacies before they can even start

Patrick Mahomes stole yet another Super Bowl appearance from Josh Allen.

No, no, don't get me wrong. I don't mean that the refs stole a Super Bowl. I'm talking about Mahomes, the 24-karat-gold quarterback in the Golden Era of quarterback play.

This is supposed to be the best that quarterbacks have ever played, a deeper pool than when Tom Brady and Peyton Manning tore up the league — even if, to this point, Brady remains the greatest ever. (Though … Mahomes is intent on catching up.)

Allen is a generational talent, with the arm of John Elway and the legs of Cam Newton — but none of the Super Bowl appearances. Why? Mahomes. Lamar Jackson is unlike any other QB we've ever seen, with a set of gifts so unique that it feels unfair to compare him to any of the great QBs. But again, Jackson has no Super Bowl appearances. Why? Mahomes is better. 

For Lamar, it's an all-the-time problem. He's 1-5 against Mahomes. For Allen, it's a playoff problem, with a 4-1 record against Mahomes in the regular season and a 0-4 record against Mahomes in the postseason.

Those records fail to reflect the superlatives with which we could rain on Jackson and Allen.

But there's no doubt: Mahomes is better. 

And even worse for those two QBs, he's greater.

He proved that again in the Chiefs' 32-29 win over the Bills at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday night in the AFC Championship Game. Mahomes has won nine straight playoff games, the second-longest streak in the Super Bowl era. He has won 17 consecutive one-possession games (including the playoffs), the longest winning streak of this kind in NFL history.

There was a lot that went into this Super Bowl appearance for Mahomes and the Chiefs. Steve Spagnuolo, Kansas City's defensive coordinator, dialed up a