Not too many people initially believed in Tom Brady — the 199th pick in the 2000 NFL Draft.
Despite leading the Patriots to a Super Bowl title as a replacement for Drew Bledsoe in 2001 and leading the NFL with touchdown passes in 2002, it wasn’t until 2003 that the quarterback’s former teammate Tedy Bruschi realized that Brady was “built different.”
“The first time I noticed there was a different Tom was in the Super Bowl versus the Carolina Panthers,” Bruschi said on the Games with Names podcast last August, via Yahoo Sports. “We couldn’t stop Carolina in the second half because we were gassed. (Jake) Delhomme had us figured out, and Tom Brady just ended up picking us up.”
Tedy Bruschi on the first time he knew Tom Brady was really built different 👀 pic.twitter.com/Nqy8DmcXHA
— Games With Names (@gameswithnames) June 20, 2023
Brady ended up leading the Patriots to his second Super Bowl title behind 354 yards, three touchdowns and one interception on 32-48 passing. New England needed every bit of Brady’s offense as they edged out the Panthers with a 32-29 final score.
Understandably, this performance ended up being Brady’s second Super Bowl MVP — an honor he would go on to claim three more times before his retirement.