Bucs Gameday

Mahomes and Kelce Duo Breaks Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski's Playoff Record

Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce have officially broken a record that was previously held by Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski.

Collin Haalboom

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Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski are widely considered to be the greatest players of all time at their respective positions. As far as quarterback-tight end duos go, they are in a class of their own.

At least they were.

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The on-the-field relationship between Kansas City Chiefs' quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, and his talented tight end, Travis Kelce, has proven to be equally as impressive. Although Kelce and Mahomes trail Brady and Gronk in terms of team success -- the former Patriots/Bucs teammates have 11 Super Bowls combined, while the Mahomes, Kelce combo has four -- their achievements as a duo have them climbing the ladder of historically great pairings at an incredible pace.

This past weekend, during the Chiefs' 27-14 victory over the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round, Mahomes hit Kelce for a touchdown in the third quarter. It was Kelce's second of the game, but the significance of the catch extends far beyond the scoreboard. 

The pass from Mahomes to Kelce was the sixteenth postseason touchdown between the two players, which is the most of any quarterback/receiver pairing in NFL history.

Before the play, Mahomes and Kelce were tied with Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski with 15. The crazy thing is that Kelce and Mahomes have played just seven seasons together. Meanwhile, Brady and Gronk spent 11 total seasons together, including their time in New England and Tampa Bay. 

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The undisputed success that Brady and Gronk experienced together likely has them atop most rankings in terms of quarterback/tight end combinations. But if Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce continue to dominate opponents like they have since they teamed up seven seasons ago, there's definitely a chance they could end up on top when it's all said and done.

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Collin Haalboom
COLLIN HAALBOOM

Prior to joining BucsGameday and Sports Illustrated, Collin's written content was provided through Bucs Banter, and NFL Draft Lounge. He is also the creator and host of the Bucs Banter Podcast. He is a graduate of the Communication Studies program at McMaster University, where he was also a varsity basketball player, and later an advanced scout. He lives with his wife and two children in Hamilton, ON. You can follow Collin on YouTube and Twitter.