Ring No. 7 would see Bucs’ Brady crowned as the NFL’s GOAT
It was always going to take something special for Jason Bell to even consider a change at No .1 in his alltime greatest NFL player list, never mind promote a quarterback to top spot.
The ex-Houston Texans star played defence, and his all-time hero was 1980s colossus Lawrence Taylor of the New York Giants – the scourge of all quarterbacks.
But BBC pundit Bell admits Tom Brady will claim the honour if he leads Tampa Bay to victory in Super Bowl LV tonight.
Brady, in his first year with the Buccaneers, is up against Kansas City Chiefs and their mercurial QB, Patrick Mahomes.
The Andy Reid-coached Chiefs are defending champs, and Mahomes the first-ever to win a Super Bowl and be voted the season’s Most Valuable Player before turning 25.
But he has some way to go before matching 43-yearold Brady.
There are a myriad of phenomenal career stats, but one fact defies logic.
Legendary careers pass without getting close to the showpiece – yet Brady has played in half the Super Bowls since his first start in 2001.
He’s won six of nine, all with the New England Patriots before departing last spring to join a franchise without a PlayOff appearance since 2007.
Bell said at the time if Brady “did something crazy like win a Super Bowl” then he wouldn’t just be the best QB in history, but the greatest player ever.
Crazy could now be about to happen.
“He’s transformed Tampa Bay,” said Bell. “This is why veteran leadership and coaching matters.
“If I play with Brady and he gives me tips then tells me: ‘Man, I’ve seen it all – and you’ve got it’.
“You don’t think I’m going to believe in myself?
Of course I am. When Brady repeats what coaches say, it’s like a new discovery for these players.
“He’s a coach on the fly, really. You always believe you’ve a chance with him – and you never want to be the one who lets him down.
“In my opinion, the game evolved and changed because of Lawrence Taylor, so he’s the greatest. But Brady will be if adding this Super Bowl to his accomplishments.”
Bucs head coach, Bruce Arians, described Brady as the missing piece of the jigsaw. The fit was perfect, turning a talented but flawed 7-9 team into an 11-win outfit.
Tampa then won three away Play-Off games last month to become the first club to play a Super Bowl in their own stadium.
Raymond James Stadium is permitted a 22,000 crowd, including 7,500 vaccinated health workers.
Brady might wish Steve Spagnuolo, Kansas City’s defensive co-ordinator, wasn’t allowed in.
He boasts a 3-2 career record when calling defensive plays against Brady, including when the Giants denied the Patriots an undefeated season in the 2008 Super Bowl.
Scots-born kicker Lawrence Tynes scored the first points of a 17-14 win as Spagnuolo’s defence got to Brady.
“You’ve got to read into those wins Spagnuolo managed,” said Bell. “He either understood all those offences, or he just understands the player. I think it’s a bit of both.
“So Brady is definitely thinking of that, and he’ll be looking at all the old tape he’s ever had against Spagnuolo.”
Super Bowl LV is live on BBC One and BBC Radio 5 Live, kick-off 11.30 p.m.