"I think it's time for a Tom Brady statue in here”: When former Michigan HC Jim Harbaugh drew 7X SB champ’s parallels to Michael Jordan, Babe Ruth
Tom Brady is undoubtedly one of the best athletes ever to play any sport and also one of the greatest ever to play football. The New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback has a record seven Super Bowl rings, something that no active signal-caller is nowhere near to equal yet (Patrick Mahomes is the closest with three rings).
Even before leaving New England for Tampa, many in the world of football were already touting Brady as the greatest-ever player. He won his sixth and last Super Bowl with the Patriots in 2017, achieving a comeback for the ages.
His Patriots were down 28-3 with 2:22 minutes left in the clock, and then magic happened. They won 34-28. Then-Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh summarized the feelings of many fans, telling the press:
"I think it's time, don't you, for a Tom Brady statue to built right here, right in front of Schembechler Hall, or do you put it in the stadium? Where do you put the Tom Brady statue?"
Jim Harbaugh also drew some comparisons with some of the best-ever players in other sports:
"I think we can all agree now, Tom Brady ... he's lapped the field in football, you're synonymous now with Babe Ruth, with Michael Jordan. The university he attended should build a statue."
Will there be a Tom Brady statue at Gillette Stadium?
Brady was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame this year. During the ceremony, Patriots owner Robert Kraft revealed there are already plans for a statue of the legendary signal-caller to be erected at Foxborough. He also said that the No. 12 jersey would never be used by any other player in the franchise. Kraft closed his speech with the following tribute to Brady:
"Our goal was to create a once-in-a-lifetime ceremony for a one-in-a-kind player. I hope we accomplished that goal with a few firsts."
Tom Brady responded in kind, closing his remarks with:
"I am eternally grateful. I am Tom Brady. And I am a Patriot."
He also played a tribute to Bill Belichick, the coach who led the strongest-ever NFL dynasty. He said:
"Thank you for your tireless commitment to develop and push me to be my very best. It wasn't me, it wasn't you, it was us, let me make this crystal clear — there is no coach in the world I would rather play for than Bill Belichick."
Over 23 seasons in the NFL, Brady had 89,214 passing yards with 649 touchdown passes. He started in an astonishing 333 games, having a record of 251-82. He is a five-time Super Bowl MVP and three-time NFL MVP.
ESPN ranks Tom Brady as No. 5 overall athlete of the 21st century
On Thursday, ESPN released its list of the top 100 athletes of the current century. Brady ranked the highest among all football players, at No. 5. Above him are LeBron James, Lionel Messi, Serena Williams and Michael Phelps (4th, 3rd, 2nd and 1st respectively). The next highest-ranked football player is Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes at 18th.
ESPN described Brady as the ultimate winner and highlighted how he entered the league as a lowly sixth-rounder and left as one of the best players in the history of the sport.