Would you like to choose Tom Brady or Patrick Mahomes for a winning workout in 2018?

Patrick Mahomes seems to be the next big NFL quarterback. The Kansas City flagman leads the league with 14 touchdown passes and has averaged more than 300 passing yards per game this fall. This MVP performance pushed the Chiefs to a 5-0 record and placed them among the leaders in the AFC crown group.

But with a big game in play, is it good enough in 2018 to usurp the GOAT?

Mahomes, 23, has shone in the first 30 percent of his season. For his part, last year's most valuable player, Tom Brady, is at the heart of his least-effective campaign of the past five years. The Patriots quarterback has only launched eight interceptions in 2017, but has six to five games. His 7.0 yards per pass are almost below last year's mark. And, perhaps most surprisingly, he has not been able to break the Jaguars and Lions defenses to win the return victories of weeks 2 and 3 this fall.

So, after the warm start of Mahomes and the sudden return of Brady into the orbit of good quarterbacks, it is no longer so difficult to ask which player you would prefer to have in 2018. But let's go a step further. Your team pulls from behind by four points. There is 90 seconds on the clock. They have two stops and the ball at their own 8-yard line.

Who would you prefer to give the ball to: Mahomes or Brady?

Arguments of: Tom Brady

He's 41, but he's still the league's most successful quarterback ever – despite his fourth-quarter breakaway at Super Bowl 52. And although his debut in 2018 was good but not great, Brady won the trust to be "the guy" until his arm explodes or that he retires, whichever comes first.

I will skip the lecture on the many returns he has organized in a legendary career and instead address the argument against Brady. Yes, it was disappointing at the beginning of 2018, but a good part of that can be explained by an understaffed list. Josh Gordon did not join the team's lineup until the 4th week. The suspension of Julian Edelman's PED prevented him from staying on the pitch until the 5th week. With Cordarrelle Patterson, Chris Hogan and Phillip Dorsett not threatening anyone, the opposing defenders double (and triple) team Rob Gronkowski.

The serious injuries inflicted on Jeremy Hill and Rex Burkhead and the slow start of rookie previously injured Sony Michel, and you have the plan for offensive stagnation. Good defenses – especially the Jaguars but also a Lions team that knows the thrill of the Patriots with first-year head coach Matt Patricia – have not had much trouble exploiting that.

But in Week 5, Brady went on to demolish the team that eventually suspended him for the first four games of 2016: the Colts. With a broad body of well-stocked receivers, he divided the Indianapolis defense with a combination of short screens and deep throws. He pitched for 242 yards and a pair of touchdowns in 2.5 quarters. He made Josh Gordon look like Randy Moss.

And while he finished with two interceptions scoring his goal, neither was his fault; each of them has entered the Indianapolis territory after having lost the hand of its recipients:

It was only against the Colts, but Brady seems to be back in working order. And now, he may have an honest back to goodness that can carry records and snatch big gains that prevent opponents from loading the field with defensive backs and playing exclusively against the pass.

That means he's the guy I want to lead my winning workout – no matter how impressive Mahomes is. – Christian D'Andrea

Arguments of: Patrick Mahomes

Will I choose against the GOAT? Yes. I play against the GOAT.

Why? Because we are in 2018 and it is fair to think that someone is better at the task. In five games of the season, Brady did not have one of his best returns in the fourth quarter, nor a win. The Patriots made three victories with tracks that they had built early and could not get out of the gigantic holes of their two defeats.

The chiefs did not need much digging and the only time they did it, Mahomes did it brilliantly. Falling 23-13 against the Broncos in the fourth quarter, Mahomes led a 12- to 95-yard touchdown to bring the Chiefs back to under three. He then led a 75-yard, eight-pass touchdown, which included throwing a first goal with his crazy left hand to win.

I know that the basic rule is "Never count down Touchdown Tom" and that's absolutely right. Brady's last comeback was to make up for a 20-10 deficit against the Jaguars in the AFC championship. He was brilliant in his eighth return to the playoffs. But he was then on the wrong side of a fourth quarter swing in the Super Bowl.

Brady was on the sidelines when Nick Foles orchestrated a 14-game touchdown that took about seven minutes and gave the Eagles a 38-33 lead. He was given to 2:21 at the GOAT to do his magic and quickly tap on the second piece. The Patriots' defense forced the Eagles to score a shot on goal and he got another dive with 58 seconds, but he could not do it.

Does that mean it's washed? No. But is Brady the wizard of the return that he was 10 years ago? It makes sense to assume that he is not quite the same guy.

In five games of the 2018 season, Brady is 22nd in the yard standings and 13th in the standings. Mahomes, on the other hand, is gathering MVP numbers up to now.

So, who do I want to drive if I need a well orchestrated car in the final minutes of a match in 2018? Give me the young gun. – Adam Stites

Which quarter is your choice?