Patrick Mahomes voted 18th-best athlete of the 21st century. Should he have ranked higher overall?

Doug Farrar

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Patrick Mahomes voted 18th-best athlete of the 21st century. Should he have ranked higher overall? image

Patrick Mahomes was voted the NFL's best active player of the 20th century.

It should come as no surprise that Patrick Mahomes was named one of the top athletes of the 21st century, regardless of the sport. That's how ESPN saw it. as they ranked Mahomes as the 18th-best overall athlete of the 21st century. Among NFL players, only Tom Brady ranked higher, at fifth overall. 

Swimmer Michael Phelps ranked first, followed by tennis legend Serena Williams, soccer player Lionel Messi, basketball's LeBron James, and Brady. 

 

 

The question is, is 18th high enough for Mahomes after all he's accomplished in his career? We're talking about a guy who's already won three Super Bowls, three Super Bowl MVP awards, two AP NFL MVP awards, and a history of regular- and postseason success that already puts him in rarefied air in pro football history. 

Not that Mahomes should have been ahead of Brady, and no offense to the 17 athletes who ranked above Mahomes, but it's hard to argue that too many athletes have accomplished more in this century. Mahomes wasn't disrespected here per se, but it's a fair argument to make that Mahomes should have ranked higher here.

Doug Farrar

Doug Farrar Photo

Doug Farrar has written about football for USA Today, Yahoo! Sports, Sports Illustrated, Bleacher Report, the Washington Post and Football Outsiders. His first book, “The Genius of Desperation,” a schematic history of professional football, was published by Triumph Books in 2018.