Tom Brady's 44th birthday: 10 memorable moments of TB's NFL career
QB Tom Brady turns 44 today, and has been getting birthday wishes from everyone around the sports world, including Skip Bayless, Adam Schefter, Julian Edelman, the University of Michigan and rookie QB Zach Wilson, who shares the same birthday with the GOAT.
Tom Brady is the only active NFL player over 40 .and is continuing his goal of playing in the league to at least the age of 45. Adam Schefter might have had the best summarization of the ageless QB:
Entering his 22nd season in the NFL, Tom Brady has had some memorable moments throughout his football career; some he would have loved and others he likely wished never occurred.
Nevertheless, here's a look at ten memorable moments in Tom Brady's legendary NFL career:
#1 Super Bowl LI Comeback (28-3) against Atlanta Falcons
The New England Patriots seemed to have lost Super Bowl LI to the Atlanta Falcons by the third quarter, as they were down 28-3. Instead, Tom Brady led his team to the greatest comeback of his career.
The Patriots scored 31 unanswered points to win 34-28 in overtime. It was also the only Super Bowl to go to overtime.
#2 Tom Brady's 1st Super Bowl - SB XXXVI vs St. Louis Rams
The game was tied at 17-all with less than two minutes remaining in regulation. Tom Brady would carry his offense down the field for the game-winning FG by Adam Vinatieri.
The Patriots started at their own 17 yard-line and went 53 yards for the FG attempt. Brady went 5 of 8 for 53 yards on that drive, and won his first Super Bowl in his first year as the starter.
#3 Tuck Rule allowed for his first Super Bowl win
In the Divisional round against the Oakland Raiders, the Patriots were down 13-10 in the final minutes of the game. Charles Woodson tackled Tom Brady and forced a fumble, with Oakland recovering to seemingly win the game.
Referees ruled Brady down, and the ball was an incomplete pass, due to the 'tuck rule': when an offensive player is holding the ball to pass forward, any intentional forward motion at the arm starts a forward pass, even if the player loses possession of the ball in attempt to tuck the ball into the body.
New England went on to win in overtime and eventually win the Super Bowl.
#4 First Super Bowl outside of New England
Honestly, the entire season in Tampa Bay for Tom Brady can be chalked up as memorable. We saw a more active and laid-back Brady once he left New England. Winning the Super Bowl last year with Tampa Bay has to make the list.
Firstly, he was the second QB to win a Super Bowl with two different teams (Peyton Manning being the other). Secondly, he showed he could succeed outside of Bill Belichick. Thirdly, he was on the first team to make the Super Bowl as the host.
Tom Brady also did it as 43 and as a top-ten QB in the league, which is more than commendable.
#5 Tom Brady getting drafted
Any player's draft moments should be memorable to them. Tom Brady's was a good and bad experience for him, though.
He was drafted by New England, where he would take over the next year, even though he was a sixth-round pick. The downside of things is that his ugly combine photo will forever haunt him.
#6 2004 AFC Championship vs 15-1 Pittsburgh Steelers
Rookie QB Ben Roethlisberger and the 15-1 Pittsburgh Steelers hosted Tom Brady on the coldest game in Steelers history. What does Brady do before the game? He warms up in a T-shirt and shorts and goes on to win 41-27!
#7 The Helmet Catch - Super Bowl XLII
Not all memorable moments are good, and Tom Brady will forever be tied to the 'Helmet Catch' against the New York Giants. The Super Bowl loss ruined a perfect season for New England.
No-name WR David Tyree had zero TDs in the season, and was mostly a special teams player. He had one TD earlier in the Super Bowl before the 'Helmet Catch'. It was 3rd-and-5 at their own 44-yard line with just over a minute remaining.
Eli Manning evaded three blitzing players and somehow got the pass off right as he got hit. Rodney Harrison battled Tyree for the ball in the air, forcing the latter to catch the ball with one hand and pin it to his helmet as he fell. The pass was completed, and allowed the Giants to score on the game-winning drive.
#8 The Perfect Season
Speaking of 2007 and Super Bowl XLII, it was the first year Tom Brady had Wes Welker and Randy Moss on his team. The Patriots finished 16-0, the first undefeated team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins and the first to do so with a 16-game slate.
It was also Tom Brady's first NFL MVP, and he broke the then-record with 50 TDs in a season. Hew also recorded his first perfect passer rating in Week 7.
#9 Suspension revenge game
The 2016 Deflategate aftermath from the previous season's playoffs ended with Tom Brady suspended for the first four games. In Week 5, he returned against the Cleveland Browns in a road game and threw for 406 yards and three TDs. It was a bold statement to the league after the ugly legal battles.
#10 Philly Special
Super Bowl LII was against the underdogs, Philadelphia Eagles and playoff hero Nick Foles. The Eagles were up 15-12 in the final seconds of the first half and were 4th-and-goal at the 1 yard-line.
The snap was directly to RB Corey Clements as Foles rolled out wide. Clement pitched the ball to TE Trey Burton, who found a wide open Nick Foles in the endzone. It was the gustiest play in Super Bowl history with a UDFA running back, a third-string TE who never threw an NFL pass and a backup QB who never caught an NFL pass.
What's even more memorable about this game is that earlier in the second quarter, the Patriots attempted almost the exact same play. Tom Brady took the snap and handed it to RB James White as Brady slowly rolled out to the right. White pitched to WR Danny Amendola, who threw the ball to a wide open Tom Brady...who dropped an easy pass.
Honorable mentions for the list include Tom Brady tossing the Lombardi Trophy off a boat in the off-season and coming off his only major injury when he missed the 2008 NFL season.