Brady making argument for the GOAT
Josh Richert
It’s no secret, I have never been a Tom Brady fan. Much of that had to do with his career as the New England Patriots quarterback, and all the times the Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick were caught bending the rules – or breaking them entirely.
A year after Brady was released by the Patriots, and he has his new team competing for the Super Bowl and becoming the first city to play in a title game it is also hosting.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneer and Brady beat the Green Bay Packers, 31-26, in Sunday’s NFC Championship game. That win has Brady playing in his record 10th Super Bowl; he is 6-3 in the big games.
Being a journalist, I like to remain objective. I try not to let me personal feelings show in the articles and stories I produce.
But on behalf of Brady, who still has a tall task as his new team takes on defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, I ask the New England Patriot organization, what were you thinking?
The decision was mutual for Brady and the Pats to part ways after his 20th season with the team.
How did New England think that was a good decision in any way, shape or form? Because it just wasn’t.
Brady has rewritten the Super Bowl record book for quarterbacks, time and again. Even as he is aging – he is 43 – he obviously has shown he can still compete at a high level. The guy is a bit of an anomaly: he just wins.
He even got hit with the, “Brady is a system quarterback” tag. Well, his system seems to be winning, so you have to give credit where credit is due.
Brady and the Bucs finished second in the NFC South to New Orleans with an 11-5 record. The Tampa Bay QB threw for 4,633 yards with a 65.7 completion percentage, 40 touchdowns and just 12 interceptions during the regular season.
Cam Newton, who I feel for before it’s never easy to be the guy who replaces a star, led the Patriots to a paltry 7-9 record. Newton threw for 2,657 yards, eight TDs, and 10 interceptions. It really is unfair to compare the two quarterbacks.
I get that there are salary cap issues, having to rate players’ worth to a program, and not wanting to overpay one place when you can spend that amount at four or five other positions. I still don’t get New England’s thinking in letting Brady go.
Was the organization happy with the rings and trophies they had already garnered with Brady at the helm? The Patriots won’t be fighting the salary cap issue next season, and so the team can bring in some real talent at several positions, as well as keep some of their key players.
However, New England still will have a huge void to fill
– in the second year after his departure – to find a replacement for Brady. Hate to tell them, you don’t replace a Tom Brady.