Tom Brady. Tom Terrific. The Comeback Kid. The G.O.A.T. The New England Patriots quarterback has provided moments that makes us thanful for his greatness.
As Tom Brady‘s career with the New England Patriots comes closer to an end, and since Thanksgiving is right around the corner, it would be appropriate to take the time to show gratitude to him.
He has given us countless memories over his 20-year NFL career. Amazing comebacks, dominant performances, and times where you could not believe what you were seeing and he made your jaw drop.
Tom Brady has given his body, mind and soul. His blood, sweat and tears to the game that he loves.
Here we take a look at the times that made us marvel at his greatness. Times that made him look inhuman. Times that made us look at him as the Greatest Quarterback of All Time.
Super Bowl XLIX
The date is Sunday, February 1, 2015. Almost 10 years to the day that Tom Brady and the New England Patriots had won their last Super Bowl title. The previous two attempts at winning a fourth ring were thwarted by Eli Manning and the New York Giants. Both times coming after what seemed like impossible and miraculous catches that put the Giants in position to put the Pats away.
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They go into this game against one of the greatest defenses in the history of the NFL: The Seattle Seahawks’ Legion of Boom. This unit included All-Pro talents like Richard Sherman, Earl Thomas, Bobby Wagner, and Kam Chancellor. This would be one of Tom Brady’s greatest challenges ever.
The Legion gave Tom Brady and the Patriots problems. Brady would be picked off early in the endzone by corner Jeremy Lane, then later on to Bobby Wagner, right after which Seattle was able to go 50 yards in 6 plays, a drive that ended with Russell Wilson finding Doug Baldwin wide open in the back of the endzone for a touchdown. The put the Seahawks up 10 in the 4th quarter.
It was time for the ‘Comeback Kid’ to do what he does best. No other team had ever overcome a 10-point deficit in any Super Bowl.
New England drove it 68 yards, including a pass from Tom Brady to Julian Edelman on 3rd-and-14. The Pats would cut the deficit to 3 after Brady found Danny Amendola for a 4-yard touchdown. The Patriots defense would force a quick three-and-out, putting Brady right back into action.
With 6:52 left and on their own 32, Brady drove the Pats down the field again. With key plays from players like Shane Vereen, Brandon Lafell, and Rob Gronkowski, they found themselves in prime position to take the lead. With 2:02 left, Brady found Julian Edelman for a three-yard touchdown, giving them the lead.
Seattle would get down the field quickly, with a 31-yard catch-and-run from Wilson to Marshawn Lynch. Then, the Patriots seemed to have bad luck all over again. Wilson went deep to Jermaine Kearse, the ball was batted into the air by Malcolm Butler, and it fell right into the hands of Kearse.
Then, the play of the game happened, with 20 seconds left at the goal line, Butler would intercept Wilson giving the ball back to New England.
This was the first Super Bowl win for the the New England Patriots after 10 years of heartbreak and coming so close. Tom Brady may not have may the game’s best play, but he put them in a position to win that game.
Super Bowl LI
2016-17 was an interesting season. Tom Brady sat out 4 games, as he was suspended due to the ‘Deflategate’ Scandal. He would return and play an all-elite, MVP-type level. The New England Patriots would finish with a 14-2 record, with Brady racking up over 3500 yards, 28 touchdown passes, and only 2 interceptions. 28-to-2 being the best TD-INT ratio in NFL history.
The Pats would tear through the playoffs, beating the Texans 34-16 and and the Steelers 36-17. They would go on to face the MVP Matt Ryan‘s Atlanta Falcons, who had the best scoring offense in the NFL (2nd in total offense), in Super Bowl LI. The Patriots were no slouches either, as they had the 4th best offense overall. However, this game started off badly for the Patriots.
The Atlanta Falcons would strip LeGarrette Blount as the Pats were driving early. The drive that followed would end with Falcons RB Devonta Freeman scoring from 5 yards out. The Falcons’ D forced a New England punt on the next drive. Atlanta would then proceed to score again on a 19-yard connection from Ryan to Austin Hooper, making the score 14-0. It would just go from bad to worse for New England. Robert Alford picked off Tom Brady, returning it 82 yards for a touchdown. The score at the half was 21-3. Atlanta would score again right out the gate, making the score 28-3.
Everybody thought it was over, except Tom Brady and the New England Patriots. Brady found RB James White for a touchdown. 28-9. Next drive, Stephen Gostkowski would kick a field goal from 33-yards out. 28-12. On Atlanta’s ensuing drive, Donta Hightower came in on a blitz, unblocked, stripping Matt Ryan. DT Alan Branch would recover it for the Pats. Brady found Danny Amendola for a 6-yard score, then James White would run in the 2-point attempt. 28-20.
Despite an amazing catch from Julio Jones on the sideline, which put Atlanta in field goal position, the Pats’ defense would knock them out of range, forcing them to punt. Tom Brady drove them down the field 91 yards, and with 58 seconds left, James White would punch it in from the 1 to score. Brady found Amendola on a screen play for the 2-point conversion. 28-28. The Pats came all the way back from what looked like an insurmountable deficit, forcing overtime, the first overtime in Super Bowl history.
The Patriots would win the toss. Brady would connect with James White, Danny Amendola, and Chris Hogan all for good yardage. Then Brady connected with Julian Edelman for 15 yards, then found White for 10 more. After a pass interference on Falcons LB De’Vondre Campbell, the Pats were at the one-yard line. Tom Brady would toss it to James White who fought his way into the endzone. Patriots win, scoring 31 unanswered points en route to Brady’s fifth title. Brady would also win his record 4th Super Bowl MVP.
This was the largest comeback in Super Bowl history, and perhaps the best comeback ever.
Tom Brady becomes the NFL’s all-time winningest quarterback
The New England Patriots were hosting the Los Angeles Rams in a 2016-17 Week 13 matchup. The Patriots would win 26-10. Brady completed 33/46 for 269 yards and a touchdown as the Pats moved to 10-2. Brady would pass Peyton Manning for the most quarterback wins in NFL history.
This is just one of many great accomplishments from Tom Brady, but 201 wins (at the time) just showed us how excellent he really has been. For his entire career, all he ever did was win. No one ever thought that a skinny quarterback out of Michigan that would be a 6th-round pick would go on to achieve unparalleled success.
Cheers of “BRADY! BRADY! BRADY!” could be heard all throughout Gillette Stadium that day. Fans knowing that their quarterback has done nothing put it all on the line for them every single week, and we all love and appreciate him for it.
Returning from major knee surgery in vintage fashion
The season prior, in the opener against the Kansas City Chiefs, Tom Brady was low by safety Bernard Pollard, which resulted in Brady tearing both his ACL and MCL, missing the entire 2008 season.
After not playing football for a year, Tom Brady came back and appeared to not have missed a step.
During the season opener against the New England Patriots AFC East division rival Buffalo Bills, Brady and the Pats found themselves down 24-13 in the final three minutes of the game. On two consecutive drives, Brady found tight end Benjamin Watson for touchdowns. The Patriots would win 25-24.
Major knee injuries like the ones Tom Brady had can be debilitating in any sport. It can be career-shortening or even career-threatening. Athletes, in most cases, never appear to be the same after suffering these kinds of injuries. However, Tom Brady came back like he never left and arguably was better than ever before in the years after the surgery.
Tom Brady’s very first Super Bowl victory
Tom Brady, in theory, wasn’t even supposed to be here. The fact that he was even the starting quarterback in the first place. He took over for then-franchise QB Drew Bledsoe earlier that season. The New England Patriots would finish 11-5, with Tom Brady receiving a Pro Bowl invitation.
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This season was already strange enough, with Tom Brady exceeding expectations. But the postseason, more specifically the Divisional Round matchup against the Oakland Raiders, was where it really got whacky. In the fourth, trailing by 3, Brady had appeared to have the ball forced out by former college teammate Charles Woodson. The “tuck rule” was cited, and it was deemed an incomplete pass as opposed to a fumble recovered by the defense.
The Patriots would go on to win the game in overtime. They would also beat the Steelers in the AFC title game to advance to the Super Bowl.
The Patriots were huge underdogs in the Super Bowl. For good reason, they were facing the “Greatest Show On Turf,” which consisted of MVPs Kurt Warner and Marshall Faulk, Torry Holt, and Isaac Bruce, among others. A lot of people thought the Patriots had no chance of winning this game.
The game was amazing. The New England Patriots started off great, eventually building a 17-3 lead entering the third. However, Kurt Warner and the Rams would work their way back and tie the game up 17-17. This is where Brady’s legend came to life. Without any timeouts, with 1:30 remaining, Brady had to put the Pats in position to win the game. Everyone can remember the famous soundbite from John Madden, where he said: “You know, I think they should just play for overtime here.” But no, Brady and the Pats went to work.
The 24-year old Brady completed 5 of 8 passes to bring them within field goal range, where Adam Vinatieri connected from 48 yards out to bring New England its first of six Super Bowl championships. Tom Brady cemented his place as the centerpiece of the franchise and would go on to become the greatest quarterback that ever walked the planet.
Tom Brady deserves the admiration of not only New England Patriots fans, but football fans everywhere. We will all miss him when he is gone.