Bill Belichick's Andy Reid prediction as 'controversial' Tom Brady comment made

NFL coaching legend has diplomatically sidestepped the contentious debate over whether or is the greatest quarterback of all time. Despite his long and successful partnership with Brady, which yielded six Super Bowl victories during his illustrious tenure with the New England Patriots, Belichick has surprisingly declined to anoint his former star player as the best QB in history.

In his new book, The Art of Winning, Belichick instead tactfully describes both and Mahomes as "really good". However, he predicts that Andy Reid, the head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, will eventually weigh in on the debate and proclaim Mahomes as the greatest quarterback of all time.

"I've never engaged in this argument with my good friend Andy Reid, the Kansas City Chiefs' head coach," Belichick said. "But I have little doubt he will write his own book one day and claim that he had the greatest QB [Mahomes] of all time."

With seven Super Bowl wins under his belt, Brady is widely regarded as one of the all-time greats, having called time on his illustrious career after the 2022 season.

Meanwhile, Mahomes, 29, has rapidly established himself as one of the finest players in the game, with two Super Bowl victories in the last three years, and is frequently hailed as the best quarterback currently playing in the NFL.

Belichick appears fully cognisant of the potential controversy his reluctance to outright endorse Brady could stir. "You know what? Brady and Patrick Mahomes are both really good. Controversial, I know," he says in the book.

The 73-year-old coach highlights Mahomes' ability to face the media post-match, demonstrating strong leadership qualities, as one reason he refuses to distinguish between the two quarterbacks.

"This kind of comment is music to my ears. Can't get enough of it," Belichick said. "It is fundamentally an example of elite leadership. Very similar to when we would win a game with Tom 28-10 and afterward he'd say, 'We should have scored forty-five!'".

However, he did offer some words of praise for his former star quarterback, adding: "Tom was hard to coach because he was so well prepared. I loved coaching Brady - he brought out the best in me. He was smart, mentally and physically tough, and the most dependable player I have coached."

Meanwhile, Reid, possibly laying the groundwork for naming Mahomes as the G.O.A.T in the near future, lauded his three-time Super Bowl MVP ahead of the Chiefs' crushing defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles in February's Super Bowl LIX.

"He's a great person, a great leader," he told Sky Sports. "He has the offense down pat - no pun intended - and he is all around, if not the best, one of best I've ever been around."

Where do the quarterbacks themselves stand in the hotly contested GOAT conversation? While Brady hasn't openly declared Mahomes as the all-time greatest, he has acknowledged that the 29-year-old QB reigns supreme in today's world of NFL stars.

Mahomes, on his part, feels there's a distance to cover before he can outshine Brady. "To me, it's always going to be tough [to be seen as the best] because Brady beat me in the Super Bowl," Mahomes admitted to NFL Network, reflecting on the loss they faced against Brady's Buccaneers, which ended 31-9 in Super Bowl LV.

"That's one thing he'll always have over my head."