Your eyes are not deceiving you. Yes, I wrote G.A.O.A.T, which stands for greatest athlete of all time. When you think of all that Tom Brady’s done, it wouldn’t be a far stretch to call him the greatest athlete to come out of the big four sports leagues in North America. What are some of the criteria I am grading him on? Well if you scroll down you can read all about it. Without further ado, let’s jump right in.
FairyTale Rookie Story
It’s absolutely insane to me that Tom Brady’s entire NFL legacy almost never happened. Drafted in the sixth round of the NFL draft in the year 2000, Brady was originally slotted into the number four depth role for the New England Patriots. Brady would fight his way towards the top of the totem pole with strong performances in practice and rookie camp. After then-New England-starter Drew Bledsoe went down with an injury, it was time for the Michigan product to shine for the club that took a chance on him.
Brady was no stranger to being low on a team’s depth chart, as he was the seventh option at his alma-mater Michigan when the first got there. Through sheer determination, he prevailed as the starter at Michigan and went on t enjoy a solid college career. That same determination is what got Brady into the starter role with the New England Patriots during his rookie season. Oh ya, did I mention that Brady would go on to win the Super Bowl as a rookie?
That is insane! Imagine being a rookie, fourth on a team depth chart at the beginning of the season, and once the season is over you are hosting the Super Bowl as a starter. Not even Hollywood executives would be able to write a script better than the real-life story of Tom Brady.
The Accolades
Aside from the cinderella story, Brady has the silverware to back up the argument that he is the greatest athlete of all time. Let’s just run down some of his awards and accolades: 7 Super Bowl Championships, 5 Super Bowl MVP’s, 3 NFL MVP awards, 4-time NFL Touchdown leader, 3-time NFL passing yards leader, 14 pro-bowls.
Oh, did I forget to mention that he also has the most wins in NFL history, most touchdown passes, most career passing attempts, and is tied for the longest touchdown pass in NFL history (99 yards). He also has a staggering 581-191 TD-INT ratio, which is absolutely phenomenal.
The Image
In my first article ever published for this website, I spoke about how Tom Brady reminded me of the “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”. Why? Because he has it all! The perfect family, the Brazilian supermodel wife, the cars, the mansions, the boats…everything a man can dream of. Now, I am not saying that his life is perfect, as I am sure the man has problems just like the rest of us, but it doesn’t hurt to have millions of dollars as well as all of the other things I just listed.
Aside from his personal life, Tom Brady is the poster boy of the NFL; he’s the definition of professionalism, and thanks to that, I am sure the NFL has gotten people to be fans who originally weren’t football fans.
Final Verdict
The verdict is in, and I think we can all agree that Tom Brady is the greatest athlete of all time. Love ’em or hate ’em, you have to respect the guy. What do you think? Is Brady the greatest athlete of all time? Let me know in the comments below.