“Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. is a former American Football quarterback who played in the National Football League for 22 seasons”; this is the first line of Tom Brady’s Wikipedia page. The keyword in that sentence? Former. Yes, you read that right, and unless you live off the grid on a deserted island and just got some wifi to read this article, then you will know that for the past couple of days Brady’s retirement has been up in the air. Well, that is no longer the case.
Tuesday afternoon Brady officially announced via Instagram his retirement from the NFL after 22 seasons. This is such a momentous moment in the history of sports because Brady is one of, if not the, greatest athlete of all time. There just aren’t enough words to explain how Brady has impacted the lives of so many, hardcore football fans, or athletes from other sports who are looking for a motivation boost.
When you look back at Brady’s story and his career arch, you would think a Hollywood scriptwriter planned it out. His career has all the makings of a Hollywood movie, except it happened in real life. Take for example his collegiate days at Michigan, where he was the seventh QB on their depth chart when he enrolled. Brady clawed his way to the top of the Wolverines depth chart, becoming the backup his first two seasons there. After that, he won the starting job and finished his Michigan career with a 20-5 record.
Then came the 2000 NFL Draft, the draft where six quarterbacks were chosen prior to Brady. With the 199th overall pick in the draft, the New England Patriots took a chance on the kid from San Mateo, California. Boy were they lucky! Solidifying himself as the greatest draft steal of all time is only a fraction of the story in Brady’s magnificent career.
In his first season in New England, Brady was fourth on the QB depth chart. As luck and fate would have it, Brady would prove his worth in practice, and with an injury to all three of the other quarterbacks during that season, he would take over the starting reins for New England. What’s even more impressive is that he would end up leading them to a Super Bowl that season; as a rookie!
The ensuing years saw Brady capture back-to-back Super Bowls in the years 2004 and 2005. Brady won 9 consecutive playoff games on his road to his first three Super Bowls. Could you even imagine that? Here is a young man who was seventh on the depth chart at Michigan, fourth on the depth chart in New England, and ends up winning 3 Super Bowls in his first four years in the league as a starting quarterback.
In the ensuing years, Brady would have some of the best seasons of his career statistically, even winning a pair of MVP awards, but would come within inches of winning two other Super Bowls (the New York Giants are to thank for that). Still, even with a Super Bowl drought in the middle of his career, Brady was still the best QB in the league by a mile.
Then in the mid-2010’s, it seems he and Bill Belichick were starting to find the winning recipe again in the Super Bowl. They would end up beating the Seahawks in the dying seconds in the 2015 Super Bowl and would execute the greatest come-from-behind victory in sports history against the Atlanta Falcons in the 2017 Super Bowl. Add to that a win against the Rams in 2019, and you have Brady winning six Super Bowls during his time in New England.
Brady would finish out the final years of his career like many old retirees do (my grandparents included); in Florida. His going to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during free-agency sent shockwaves around the NFL, and for good reason. Brady had now elevated a sub-par team into a serious contender. His two short years in Tampa Bay garnered a Super Bowl win, as well as a culture shift in the organization. They were now winners.
It seems that whatever Brady touched turned to gold. From just an athlete’s perspective, Tom’s story is just downright disgustingly motivating, and I think that is what separates the good athletes from the truly great athletes of the sports world; their story motivates you to become a better version of yourself. Tom, I think I speak for all sports fans when I say, thank you! (Well maybe not Buffalo Bills fans).