Brady’s memorable games in New England
Though Tom Brady left the Patriots he’ll always belong to New England.
After 20 seasons, six Super Bowl titles and countless other accomplishments for the Patriots, Brady goes down as the region’s biggest football star. No contest.
While Brady never got to win one of his Super Bowl titles on his home field in New England, with those games played at neutral site, Brady still authored some iconic moments at the Patriots’ home stadium.
The Patriots played at old Foxboro Stadium in Brady’s first two seasons in the NFL before moving into the newer Gillette Stadium. Since first appearing there when it opened in 2002, Brady has made 157 starts in the regular season and playoffs there, winning 134 of them while throwing for 41,285 yards and 304 TDs. Those are all records for any QB in any stadium in NFL history.
Here’s a look at some of Brady’s most memorable games in New England:
Tuck Rule: Brady’s first playoff game was his only one at old Foxboro Stadium and one that still gets talked about. On a snowy New England night on Jan. 19, 2002, long before Brady was considered the greatest QB ever, he almost was a goat of a different kind.
With the Patriots trailing the Raiders 13-10 in the final two minutes, Brady went back to pass and had the ball knocked out by former Michigan teammate Charles Woodson. The Raiders recovered the apparent fumble and celebrated, only to have the call reversed on replay by referee Walt Coleman because of the little-known Tuck Rule that was later eliminated.
Peytonvs.Tom: The rivalry that defined much of Brady’s career was the one he had with Peyton Manning. Brady won 11 of the 17 meetings, including the first time they met in the playoffs.
In the AFC title game at New England on Jan. 18, 2004, Brady set the tone with an opening drive TD pass to David Givens. Brady drove the Patriots to field goals on the next two drives following interceptions by Manning and New England went on to win 24-14.
Record day: Brady had one of his most prolific playoff games at home on Jan. 14, 2012, when he and the Patriots ended Tebow Mania. Tim Tebow had led the Broncos on an improbable run with an OT win over Pittsburgh in the wild-card round, but Denver had no answer for Brady.
Brady threw six TD passes on the first nine drives of the game, tying a playoff record held by Daryle Lamonica and Steve Young, as the Patriots won 45-10.
Deflategate: The win over the Ravens set up an AFC title game the following week that was rather ordinary on the field. Brady threw for 226 yards and three TDs in a 45-7 win over Indianapolis on Jan. 8, 2015, that sent the Patriots to their sixth Super Bowl of the Brady era.
Soon after the game, reports emerged that several of the balls the Patriots used in the first half of the game were underinflated. That set off a long league investigation followed by a lengthy legal fight that eventually led to Brady being suspended for the first four games of the 2016 season for his role in the “Deflategate” scandal.
Goodbye game: Brady’s final home game with the Patriots was memorable for the way it ended — with a Brady blunder. The 20-13 loss to the Titans on Jan. 4, 2020, finished with a Brady pick-six.