6 Forgotten Great Moments of Tom Brady's Patriots Career
By Michael Luciano
In just a few days, Tom Brady will officially sign a contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, putting an end to two decades of success as a New England Patriot.
While everyone remembers the championships, MVPs, and immaculate throws deep down the field, Brady has an entire catalog of moments that would be career highlights for most, but are just run of the mill for TB12.
Most may not remember these six moments in time, but they remain some of his greatest achievements on the football field.
6. His First NFL Start
Oddly enough, Brady's first career start came against longtime rival Peyton Manning and his Indianapolis Colts. Brady's numbers were extremely pedestrian, as he only went 13-for-23 for 168 yards and no touchdowns, but the New England defense suffocated Manning en route to a dominant 44-13 win. This was a sign of what was to come, as these two GOATs would duke it out plenty over the next decade (and Brady usually came out on top).
5. Beating the Titans 59-0 in 2009
It took the rest of the league a few more years to figure out Jeff Fisher was a fraud, but Brady and the Patriots exposed him in this legendary drubbing. Clad in New England's old AFL uniforms, Brady dominated in a driving snowstorm, throwing five touchdowns in the second quarter and finishing with six touchdown passes against just five incompletions. Just looking at the raw numbers (and the conditions), this might be the best game Brady ever played.
4. Beating 14-2 San Diego In 2007
Led by Philip Rivers at quarterback and coached the venerable Marty Schottenheimer, the Chargers were on a crash course with the franchise's first Super Bowl since the Stan Humphries/Junior Seau days of 1994. Those plans were ended by Brady at Qualcomm Stadium, as a Reche Caldwell touchdown and Stephen Gostkowski field goal helped overcome three Brady turnovers and push Brady to one of the biggest upset wins of his entire career. Inadvertently, Brady ruined Rivers' best chance at making it to a Super Bowl.
3. Last-Second Touchdown to Kenbrell Thompkins in 2013
New England needed a game-winning drive to take down Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints in Foxborough back in 2013, but there wasn't a soul in that building who believed that Brady was truly down for the count. Brady ended this game in dramatic fashion by linking up with Kenbrell Thompkins in the back of the end zone with only a few seconds left on the clock. Even when you have a legendary signal caller on your team, you weren't safe from Brady magic late in games.
2. Game-Winning Touchdown to Brandon LaFell in 2014 Playoffs
Brady has had his fair share of playoff dust-ups with the Baltimore Ravens, from their 33-14 demolition at the hands of Joe Flacco to the Billy Cundiff game. His 2014 meeting was one of the most memorable, given the pulse-pounding ending, as Brady dropped a perfect pass into the back left corner of the end zone, where Brandon LaFell reigned it in to give New England a 35-31 lead that they would never relinquish. Brady always seemed to break out the pixie dust in the playoffs, and this game is the archetypical example of that.
1. 2005 AFC Title Game Win Over Pittsburgh
The Steelers were 15-1 in the regular season, and star rookie quarterback Ben Roethlisberger had yet to lose a game as a starter. Unfortunately, he ran into a New England team hellbent on winning their third Super Bowl in four seasons. While Brady was able to lean on Corey Dillon and the running game, he managed to toss two touchdowns passes in a 41-27 win that catapulted New England into another Super Bowl. In terms of the degree of difficulty required, this might be Brady's greatest upset ever.