By retiring “for good”, Tom Brady is turning a page of history. The quarterback marked the NFL in many ways during the 23 seasons in which he threw the ball.
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Here are seven great moments from the “GOAT” career:
1. Drew Bledsoe falls in battle
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When Tom Brady was selected with the 199th overall pick in the 2000 draft, no one could have predicted he would become the best quarterback in NFL history.
It took another player’s misfortune to start Brady’s legendary journey. On September 23, 2001, New England Patriots starter Drew Bledsoe took a heavy tackle and suffered severe internal bleeding. Brady was sent into the fray and Bledsoe was never the “Pats” starter again after that.
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2. The first Super Bowl
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A few months after taking the reins of the attack in New England, Brady led his team to Super Bowl XXXVI. For the occasion, the Patriots took on the mighty St. Louis Rams, a formation that had inherited the nickname of “best show on the grass” that year.
The Rams tied the game with 14 straight points in the fourth quarter, but left 90 seconds on the clock for Brady. The player, who had very little experience at the time, completed five of the eight passes he attempted to allow kicker Adam Vinatieri to go with a winning field goal on the last play of the match.
It was on this day that the other NFL teams began to understand that you should never believe Brady beaten while there is time left in the game.
3. A historic season
REUTERS/Mike Segar (UNITED STATES)
In 2007, after two more Super Bowl conquests, Tom Brady was at the top of his individual game. This allowed the Patriots to maintain a pristine 16-0 regular season record. Only three other football teams have achieved such a feat, the 1972 Miami Dolphins and the 1934 and 1942 Chicago Bears.
Going back to the Brady of 2007, the quarterback broke the record for most touchdown passes with 50. He was also the NFL’s leading center for completion percentage (68.9%) and yards. collected by the pass (4806). That season, he won the first of his three NFL Most Valuable Player awards.
Brady and the Pats’ 2007 campaign, however, ended with a 17–14 Super Bowl XLII loss to the New York Giants.
4. The climax of a rivalry
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For the vast majority of his career, Brady played in the NFL alongside another great quarterback, Peyton Manning. Fans have had the chance to see the two men fight great battles over the seasons.
The two friends have faced each other 17 times and Brady has had the best 11 times. If we must remember a single game where Brady was spectacular against Manning, it was November 24, 2013. Trailing 24-0 after two quarters of play, the “Pats” and Brady returned from the back to win 34-31 in overtime against Manning’s Denver Broncos. The Patriots offense had scored 31 unanswered points before Manning leveled the score to force overtime. However, it was Brady who had the last word in overtime.
5. A historic comeback
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Super Bowl LI is Brady’s penultimate championship with the Patriots, but certainly the most spectacular. The center and his team trailed 28-3 midway through the third quarter against the Atlanta Falcons.
Brady shrugged off that 25-point deficit and allowed his offense to score four touchdowns on as many possessions to tie the game 28-28 after four regulation quarters. Playing some luck, Brady got the ball first in overtime. The “Pats” offense crossed 75 yards, en route to the pay zone and the biggest comeback in Super Bowl history.
6. He leaves Foxborough
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During the offseason following the 2019 campaign, Brady sent shock waves through the NFL world. The 40-year-old left the Patriots to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He thus turned his back on head coach Bill Belichick, ending one of the most prolific associations in the world of sport. The two men lifted the Vince-Lombardi trophy six times together.
“GOAT” fans in New England have had only one opportunity to see Brady at Gillette Stadium in a different uniform than the “Pats”. On October 3, 202, the holder of seven Super Bowl rings achieved what he has done his entire career: a game-winning push in the final minutes of the game. He allowed the “Bucs” to win 19-17.
7. The Last Triumph
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In his first season with the Buccaneers, Brady experienced the ecstasy of winning his seventh Super Bowl game. For the occasion, he faced the Kansas City Chiefs and a certain Patrick Mahomes. Many argued that this duel represented a transfer of power and that the young pivot of the Chiefs was going to be the next “GOAT”. It was misunderstanding Brady, who threw three touchdowns and no interceptions in a 31-9 dominance of the “Bucs.”
By winning with a club other than the Patriots, Brady cemented his legacy as the greatest of all time. With seven victories in his pocket, the quarterback has won more often than any team in the NFL.
2023-02-01 08:00:00
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