I’m sure everybody knows the story of Tom Brady by now. If you don’t, I’ll be more than happy to remind you of it. He was selected in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots with the 199th overall pick. The story has become so well-known that there was a documentary that aired on ESPN called “The Brady 6” which displayed the six quarterbacks who were all selected before Tom that year. All those guys are out the league and retired. Brady is still going strong as he gets set to enter his 20th season with the Patriots. He just turned 42 years old and looking to become the oldest ever to start all 16 games in a regular season at that age. Following his birthday, he was given a nice gift by the franchise: A two-year contract extension that will raise his salary to $23 Million this season. The overall deal is worth $70 Million.
There’s truly no debate anymore on who the greatest quarterback in NFL history is. He’s done it all and he’s still winning. Just in February, he became the first quarterback ever to win six Super Bowls dubbing him as football’s “Michael Jordan”. Say whatever you want about him, all this man cares about is winning football games and he’s done that since the start of the millennium. In 2019, many thought this was the end for the legend. They wrote him off, said he was done, and he’s seen better days. The numbers may have been down from what we saw in his MVP season in 2017, but last year’s Tom Brady showed you what mental toughness looks like. He’s dealt with adversity, the outside noise and the negativity. All I can say is, writing him off is the worst thing you can do whether you’re a fan or an analyst. He delivers when he needs too, and you saw that in the playoffs against the Chargers and a week later for the AFC title game in Kansas City against the Chiefs. When you needed him to make that big throw to put you in good position, he did just that. He’s such a competitor with that burning fire in him. Although he’s accomplished practically everything that a football player can do, he still plays with a chip on his shoulder and this is something I’ve said about him for years now. What showed his greatness to me was the 2013 season. The Patriots dealt with so much that year from injuries to Rob Gronkowski to the Aaron Hernandez situation and losing key receivers from the year before. What’s 12 do? Leads the Patriots to the division title once again, a first-round bye in the AFC playoffs and he’s a game away from the Super Bowl again with guys such as Kenbrell Thompkins and Aaron Dobson as his top two receivers. After the ACL tear in 2008, he’s gotten better as he got older. He battles, he may not have the best numbers but continues to play at a high level and the end of the day, the man wins. With the game on the line, there’s no other quarterback I’d rather have leading my team down the field to put me in the best position to win than Tom Brady.
What else can I say? He’s played in nine Super Bowls, he’s won six of them, he leads the Patriots to the AFC East division title each year, he’s played in 13 AFC title games, he’s in the playoffs every single year, he’s won four Super Bowl MVP’s and three league MVP awards. He’s TBE (The Best Ever) and will always put the Patriots in the best position to win. As long as he’s under center, they’re always going to be a contender.
