With a little over two minutes left in the final quarter of Super Bowl LI, Tom Brady was ready to cement his legacy as the greatest quarterback to ever play in the NFL. The only problem, however, was he was already there.
Creating a Mt. Rushmore of the greatest signal callers, there’s Johnny Unitas, Joe Montana, John Elway and Brady.
Even before the Patriots’ incredible comeback, or even after Brady’s pick-six to put the Falcons up 21-0, or before the opening kickoff to the game, Brady was there to stay on the mountain top, win or lose.
The argument for Montana over Brady is still strong. Joe Cool played in an era that was not friendly to quarterbacks like it is now. He still managed to win all four Super Bowls he played in and did it without throwing an interception.
You can still make the case for Montana over Brady and you will not hear much arguing from fans (including myself).
Brady, however, has done something Montana never did. He has won five Super Bowls, including four MVP awards, and won Super Bowl LI to finish his 17th season. Montana won his last Super Bowl in his 11th season.
Brady, keeps adding to his long list of Super Bowl records. He has the record for total yards gained, the record sits at 1,605 total yards gained in six super bowl games. His record is safe by almost 500 yards. He also owns the record for most touchdown passes in a super bowl game with 13. Perhaps the most impressive record he owns is the one for most passes completed with 164 completed passes.
In Super Bowl LI, Brady led the greatest comeback in the game’s history. With New England trailing 28-3 at halftime, most of America (besides those residing in Massachusetts) felt the game was over. Before Super Bowl LI, the biggest comeback in a Super Bowl was 10.
Yes, the Patriots defense deserves a lot of credit and so do the Falcons for some horrific play-calling, but at the end of the day, it was their unquestionable leader that led them back.
It was a perfect end to an otherwise imperfect season.
Brady was suspended four games at the beginning of the year for his role in the Deflategate saga.
Patriots fans felt cheated by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, while others began questioning Brady’s legacy.
Deflategate, however, will go down as one of the dumbest “controversies” in sports history. Deflated footballs or not, the Patriots won that game 45-7.
After Brady served his suspension, many coined it his revenge tour. Brady himself stayed silent on the issue (besides shooting a funny Foot Locker ad) and had one of the best seasons of his career.
He threw 28 touchdowns and two interceptions, putting him in the MVP conversation despite playing only 12 games this season.
We should not underestimate Brady’s age in all this either. He is 39. Montana retired at 38. John Elway won his last Super Bowl at 38 and then retired.
Brett Favre, who at age 40 led the Vikings to the NFC Championship Game, is the only one who comes close to having a season like Brady’s. The only difference between the two is that Brady shows no signs of slowing down.
He has said he can play until he is 45. After the season he just had, how can we doubt him?
Chris McMahan, a junior journalism major, is a staff writer for the Campus Times. He can be reached by email at christopher.mcmahan@laverne.edu or on Twitter @therandom_jedi.
