Patriots Drive for 5: Super Bowl LI Extra Emotional for Tom Brady
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will be aiming to win his fifth Super Bowl on Sunday, but this one would be extra emotional.
Tom Brady shows a lot of passion on the field. Off the field, however, fans seldom get a peek into his heart. That’s why the days leading up to Super Bowl LI feels a bit different in relation to the New England Patriots quarterback.
On Wednesday, Brady revealed that his mother Galynn Brady has been battling a serious illness. While he has kept it to himself throughout the season, the revelation helped explain the recent emotions he has expressed publicly when it comes to his family.
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"“It’s personal with my family, and I’m just hoping everyone’s here on Sunday to share in a great experience,” Brady said Wednesday via Boston.com. “But it has been a tough year. Every family goes through different things and you know my family has always been a great support system for me and hopefully we can make everyone happy on Sunday.”"
The 39-year-old quarterback has a chance to further cement his name into NFL history with a victory over the Atlanta Falcons. But, what he has reminded us all of this week is that life is larger than football, especially when it comes to the melodrama surrounding deflated footballs.
As satisfying as it would be to receive the Vince Lombardi trophy from Roger Goodell, it will be extra special and sentimental to lead his team to victory in front of his mom, who he hopes can attend the game. With what has been going on and with him reaching the end of his career, he doesn’t know how many more chances he will get to play in front of the woman who put him on this earth.
"“It’s (will be) a special moment,” Brady said of his mother possibly making it to the game. “It’s always been that way. I think this year is – it will be as special as it’s ever been.”"
Teammates rally around Brady
With all that Tom Brady had to endure this season, his teammates are really pumped up to win this game for their leader. It’s not just about getting revenge for the four-game suspension Brady had to serve this season, it’s about life and everything the future Hall-of-Fame quarterback has gone though in the last couple of years on a personal level.
"“Tom has a huge heart,” Special teams ace Matthew Slater said via the Boston Herald. “As his teammate, you really feel like he genuinely cares about you. He really has a love for you, so it’s hard not to love the guy in return. With all the adversity that he has been through over the course of his career, the way the draft played out for him, obviously the things he had to go through this year, you can’t help but be excited for the guy the way he has been able to overcome all of that and play great football over an extended period of time.”"
Slater and teammates are excited for the opportunity to be a part of history. They also don’t know how much longer they will get to have Brady on the field as their quarterback and realizes how special he is as a leader and as an individual. Defensive end Rob Ninkovich said it best when he said:
"“Tom is the heartbeat (of the Patriots). The guy is phenomenal, a competitor, the best quarterback ever. It’s not just the way he is on the football field.”"
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