Last week when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers traveled to SoFi stadium for their matchup with the Rams, many were quick to point out that it was the first time in Tom Brady’s professional career that he’d ever played a game in Los Angeles. For a player who has accomplished as much as Brady and is currently in their 22nd NFL season, first times for anything seem as notable as they are rare. This week brings another first for Brady; as the man who spent 20 seasons and racked up 6 Super Bowl Championships as the quarterback of the New England Patriots will for the first time make his entrance onto the field at Gillette Stadium through the visitor’s tunnel.
First times are identifiable in the moment – there’s no ambiguity; either you’ve done something before or you haven’t. Final times, on the other hand, can be less clear.
Particularly for a player like Brady, who seems to take shattering norms as a point of personal pride; it’s futile to try and make too many predictions about what we will see from him in the coming years. Yet even for the age-defying Brady, it seems likely that this will be his final game in Foxborough. At 44-years-old, he would have to play until he was 52 given the cycle of out-of-conference matchups before Tampa Bay will return to New England. He could theoretically switch teams again, seeing as he’s only under contract through next season, but his fit in Tampa Bay and the team’s success make it more likely than not that he will end his career as a Buccaneer; presumably before age 52 when most Americans his age begin considering Medicare.
With that in mind, and as we approach what will likely be the most-watched regular-season matchup in recent history, here are a few storylines to follow as we get ready for Tom Brady’s one final ride in Foxborough.
How Will the Crowd React?
This is going to be interesting.
Tom Brady has provided the current generation of fans in New England more joy than any single athlete in any other sport. He led the Patriots to 9 AFC Championships and 6 Super Bowl victories over 20 years, and he did it with a love for the people in Boston and New England only ever rivaled by Red Sox great David Ortiz. In short, Brady is New England royalty.
Even still, it’s tough to know how fans are going to respond to him running onto that field.
My guess is that it will be overwhelmingly positive. The loudest applause for an opposing player in the history of Gilette Stadium. But this is still a notoriously greedy fan base, and so while I expect the majority of fans to welcome their dearly departed with warmth, I am certain that a not-so-insignificant and vocal faction will express their dismay for how the relationship between their beloved quarterback and favorite team ended. In their eyes, the party ended prematurely. Beyond the pre-game welcome, trying to gauge how fans will react when a certain milestone is broken (more on that below), is even more confounding.
Another storyline to follow as it pertains to fan reactions – what will we see should Brady and the Buccaneers impose their will as many assume is the likely outcome? Let’s see who the boos flow to if in the 3rd quarter Tampa Bay is leading 28-6, with 275 passing yards and 4 touchdowns from Brady. Something tells me if the Patriots are staring down the barrel of a 1-3 start with the guy they let walk away on the other sideline, we won’t be hearing much kumbaya from the crowd.
Brady to Break Passing Record
As if there wasn’t enough hype and anticipation for this matchup, it comes in a week where Brady is a mere 68 yards away from passing Drew Brees as the league’s all-time leader in passing yards. One side note: it’s totally absurd the way the NFL handles these records. The league calls these ‘all-time’ records, but Brady already has over 7,000 more passing yards than Brees when you factor in post-season numbers.
In any event, Brady will likely pass that record at some point in the 1st quarter, at which point the question will become what New England has planned to commemorate the moment.
It would be absurd of them not to recognize the accomplishment in one way or another, but do they have a video montage prepared, or something more subdued? Whatever they end up putting together, it will be amusing when their gesture of appreciation is met with frustration by Brady as it interrupts a Tampa Bay drive.
If the defense can’t stop him, maybe this can.
Welcome To the NFL, Mac Jones
Both of these teams are led by coaches and veterans who have played in and won big NFL games. Super Bowls, in fact. Patriots rookie quarterback Mac Jones is one notable exception. Jones won a National Championship in 2020 while at Alabama, throwing for 464 yards and 5 touchdowns; but make no mistake, this Week 4 matchup will be the biggest game of his life.
No one in New England or around the league expects Jones to come in and fill the shoes of Brady. Still, Jones is getting ready to go head to head with the greatest quarterback of all time, while also looking to etch his name into Patriots lore.
It’s tempting to contextualize Jones’ upcoming challenge by looking at how he has performed during the team’s first three weeks, but that’s almost irrelevant. He’s one of many new parts in an offense still finding their identity and has quietly been the brightest spot on the team, but this is the equivalent of Kiefer Sutherland in that Designated Survivor show. Was he a charismatic elected official with an ability to lead? Sure. That doesn’t mean he was ready to be President. The same goes for Jones, who is a talented young rookie now being asked to beat the reigning Super Bowl Champions on national television.
It’s called many things; the X-factor, the gamer gene, that indefinable trait – all referring to that attribute which separates good, talented players from great, generational stars. Brady has it, of course. And while regardless of the outcome Sunday night it will be premature to say whether Mac Jones has it; it’s not an exaggeration to say this has the potential to be the game we look back on years later as the beginning of something special.
Belichick vs. Brady
Even before Brady’s departure from New England, the question has long been; who is more responsible for the success of the Patriots over the course of their run, Brady or Belichick?
Belichick defenders will argue that the coach’s imprint is on the entire team, while Brady’s is simply on the offense; and they’ll point to Belichick’s success at various points over their run together when Brady was sidelined as proof he didn’t need the longtime Patriot. Brady defenders will argue the players are the ones that make the difference and tell you to look no further than last season’s Super Bowl run in Tampa Bay as evidence of that fact. The truth is, as most things are, likely more of a grey area. I’m also certain, however, that both of these very competitive men, after a hefty dose of truth serum, would whole-heartedly admit to believing they themselves were primarily responsible.
“I was wondering if after all these years you’d like to meet.”
— Peacock (@peacockTV) September 28, 2021
This Sunday: Tom Brady makes his return to Foxboro.
?: Adele pic.twitter.com/xhUxEwZGO5
A Week 4 regular season matchup will not be a battle for supremacy, but it will be remarkable.
The only possible comparison to this would be if Michael Jordan would have gone to Washington right after his time in Chicago, won the NBA Finals with the Wizards, and then came back the next season to square off against Phil Jackson in Chicago. That would have been insane, and the truth is that when you factor in all the baggage between Brady and Belichick and their 20-year professional relationship, this is even crazier than that absurd hypothetical.
Belichick may not have the weapons on defense he needs; but what kind of scheme does he draw up against his longtime quarterback? Brady may be better off handing the ball to his running backs against a Patriots front-seven that has struggled versus the run; but does he want to put on a show and stick it to the guy who let him leave?
When the game is over, they’ll shake hands and hug. What unfolds before that should be appointment viewing for anyone who calls themself a football fan.
Hell, anybody with a pulse.
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