Tom Brady News & Rumors

Source: Brady, Pats talks are positive
Comment
July 26
ESPN.com
 
"New England and Tom Brady made enough progress in talks aimed at a long-term contract extension that some believe a deal could be completed this summer, according to sources familiar with the situation. If a deal cannot be struck, it will be primarily because of how complex the contract is and how difficult it is to complete it without knowing the specifics of the NFL's next collective bargaining agreement. But one person familiar with the talks said there is ongoing dialogue that he described as positive and, while no deal is imminent, one now is within reach. Brady has one year remaining on his contract."
Brady, Patriots have yet to agree on new contract
Comment
July 25
Boston Globe
 
"Tom Brady will report to his 11th training camp as a New England Patriot this week in pursuit of many of the same goals he's had in the 10 years previous. To improve as a player. To make his teammates better. To become, once again, a champion. But for the first time in a long time, on-field goals won't be the only things he's focused on as he sweats through the summer humidity with his teammates. The Patriots' franchise quarterback wants a new contract. Period. And he doesn't have one, which is a problem. These are uncharted waters in what has otherwise been as strong a relationship as a quarterback and his team can have. Brady is a year closer to being eligible for unrestricted free"
Brady is on the money
Comment
July 23
Boston Globe
 columnist Christopher L. Gasper
""People don't want to see well-to-do owners and well-to-do players squabbling about money." -- Patriots owner Robert Kraft, last October. No they don't, especially when the well-to-do owner is Kraft and the well-to-do player is Tom Brady. That's not to suggest there is a quarrel between the Kraft family and their franchise quarterback. But with training camp commencing a week from today, what there clearly is not is any tangible sign of progress toward a new contract for Brady, who is heading into the final year of the six-year deal he inked in 2005. The only holdout involving Brady is not coming from him, but the Patriots. He shouldn't have to threaten not to show up to camp to get a new"
Brady won't hold out -- but he should
Comment
July 22
Boston Globe
 
"From the outset, let's make this crystal clear: Based on what we believe to be true, the chances of Tom Brady holding out on the Patriots are microscopic, assuming they exist at all. Brady is too loyal to the Kraft family, too image-conscious overall, too good a teammate to do otherwise. But from a pure business standpoint, as owners and players brace for a labor war, he probably shouldn't show up. And if you were his agent, you would be telling him that, too. I know I would."
Brady, Manning watching a rookie?
Comment
July 17
Boston Globe
 
"This is as far along as I can remember without a first-round rookie being signed, and the big one, of course, is Rams QB Sam Bradford. Since the Patriots' first-rounder (Devin McCourty) went 27th overall, the result of Bradford's negotiations may not have a huge impact of the New England's rookie dealings. But in another way ... ESPN's Adam Schefter tweeted this morning that Bradford is likely to get $45-50 million guaranteed, which sounds outrageous, until you consider that 2009 No. 1 pick Matthew Stafford got $41.7 million guaranteed. And you have to think that Tom Brady and Peyton Manning are both paying attention. Particularly Manning, since both he and Bradford (and Stafford, too) are"
Is Brady's deal an issue?
Comment
July 5
Boston Globe
 
"How will Tom Brady's contract situation affect the team? The labor climate; Peyton Manning's negotiations; Brady's $3.5 million salary for 2010. Last summer, Eli Manning and Philip Rivers got deals with nearly $40 million guaranteed, and so it stands to reason that Brady and the elder Manning brother could demand somewhere between $40 million and $50 million in guaranteed dollars on new long-term deals."
Tom Brady's pay now in play
Comment
June 18
Boston Herald
 
"At this time last year, our focus and attention with regard to Tom Brady was much different. Minicamp was the first real measuring stick on how he was progressing from major reconstructive knee surgery, and the nasty staph infection that ensued. The Brady Knee Watch was the major storyline of the June camp. How did he look? How comfortable was he dropping back to pass? Was he stepping into throws? Was there any hesitation with a crowd around his legs? A year later, his knee wasn't even the most famous knee at camp. That distinction belonged to Wes Welker. Brady still wears a brace, hidden under the sweatpants he wore during the just completed three-day minicamp. But there was no drama or"
Union line from Tom Brady
Comment
June 17
Boston Herald
 
"Patriots quarterback Tom Brady hasn't given an on-field interview during offseason workouts, choosing to remain silent while the questions persist about his expiring contract. But as a team representative to the players union, Brady is speaking out against the proposed 18-game season. On the same day NFL owners presented the plans for what they call the "enhanced season," Brady issued a statement on NFLPlayers.com. It is Brady's first public act as the team's assistant union representative (behind lead representative Matt Light), indicating he's more than a figurehead."
Brady 'going with flow' despite lack of extension
Comment
June 6
ESPN.com
 
"Quarterback Tom Brady is known for keeping his cool under pressure, an approach that is also extending to the negotiating table. If Brady is concerned or disappointed about entering the final year of his contract -- with no extension apparently imminent -- he's not showing it. "Things happen. Some are out of your control," he said Friday night. "You just have to go with the flow." Brady's remarks, delivered at a charity flag football game for Best Buddies, come following a Yahoo! Sports story Wednesday that cited a "growing disconnect" in contract talks between Brady and the Patriots. Told that many in the New England region might have gulped hard thinking the sides might be at odds, Brady"
Brady spins wheels
Comment
June 6
Boston Globe
 
"Once upon a time, before he became an NFL star and a global fashion icon, a young quarterback named Tom Brady took part in an event called the Best Buddies Challenge, riding a bike with his sisters to raise money for developmentally challenged individuals. Yesterday, the same Tom Brady, now quite a bit more well-known, was back at Craigville Beach for the Challenge. Though he undoubtedly is asked almost daily to lend his name to organizations, he continues to lend his support to Best Buddies, and now is chairman of the event. "This was the first thing that I did when I came here [to New England],'' he said. "My sisters and I all rode, I think it was 2000 or 2001, and it's grown every"
Brady on Welker's 'Chip'
Comment
June 5
Boston Globe
 
"Now that we have that pesky contract stuff out of the way, we can get Patriots QB Tom Brady's take on the story of the week -- Wes Welker's return to the practice field just four months after reconstructive knee surgery. Put it this way: Brady didn't seem all together shocked. "He's such a hard worker, and Wes has that chip on his shoulder," Brady said. "I think any time you're an undrafted free agent, and you get cut by a team like he did with San Diego, you always kinda of carry that with you." Brady also assessed the team's early OTA work, saying that, "It's a long process for all of us. A lot of us are getting to know each other for the first time, and it's fun to be out there and see"
Tom Brady: 'Go with flow'
Comment
June 5
Boston Herald
 
"Patriots Nation was certainly a bit unsettled by a report Thursday regarding a "growing disconnect" between Tom Brady [stats] and the team regarding contract negotiations. The franchise quarterback, who is entering the final year of his $60 million contract, did not want to go into details last night during a break from his flag football game and celebrity barbecue at Harvard Stadium, but he did answer a few questions. "There's nothing anybody can solve other than the team and myself," he said. "We're in a situation where . . . there's a lot of guys in my situation. So, really, I just want to focus on what's coming up this week. I'm just excited about being back on the field with the guys."
The Hall of Fame prospects of ...
Comment
June 4
Boston Globe
 
"NFL.com's Pat Kirwan undertook the challenging task of evaluating the Hall of Fame prospects of active players, and came up with a list of seven guys he considers locks for Canton. You can guess which Patriot was on the list. Here it is: 3. Tom Brady, QB, Patriots: It's not about stats for Brady, although a single-season record of 50 touchdown passes in 2007 was quite impressive. The only number that matters: Three. As in three Super Bowl championships (twice MVP) says it all. Joining Brady in the "Canton Bound" are Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Ray Lewis, Tony Gonzalez, LaDainian Tomlinson and Ed Reed. Only one other Patriot made any of Kirwan's other categories ("Close but not"
Brady quiet on contract
Comment
June 3
Boston Globe
 
"Patriots owner Robert Kraft has assured on several occasions this year that Tom Brady will be a member of the team for years to come. But according to a report yesterday on Yahoo! Sports, there has not been much in the way of substantive talks between the Patriots and Brady's representatives on a contract extension. NFL columnist Michael Silver wrote that "there's a growing sense of disconnect between the two camps.'' Brady declined to comment on the situation with Silver, saying he is uncomfortable discussing the subject. The coming season marks the final year of the six-year, $60 million contract Brady signed before the 2005 season; he has never begun a "contract year'' without a new"
Growing disconnect in Brady contract talks
Comment
June 3
Yahoo! Sports
 
"Tom Brady is back in Boston this week, participating in offseason training activities for the New England Patriots and preparing for what he hopes will be another Super Bowl run. While most of the region's sports fans are immersing themselves in the NBA Finals and chanting "Beat L.A.," New England's most beloved sports hero will be a fixture at the Pats' training facility in Foxborough, planning to hang around at least through the team's June 15-17 minicamp. Then Brady will likely return to Los Angeles, where he has spent the bulk of his time since the Pats' 33-14 playoff defeat to the Baltimore Ravens last January, and where he and his wife, supermodel Gisele Bundchen, are having a"
NFL Confidential: Does offseason matter for Tom Brady?
Comment
May 16
Jacksonville Times-Union
 columnist Vito Stellino
"Tom Brady might never get his just due as an NFL quarterback. Brady led the Patriots to four Super Bowls in the past decade, won three of them and left the field in the fourth quarter with the lead in the fourth one, only to see the Patriots defense trumped by the Giants quarterback Eli Manning in the final minute. That cost the Patriots a perfect 19-0 season. Manning's brother, Peyton, took the Colts to two Super Bowls. He won one and lost the other one when he threw a pick-six interception in the fourth quarter. In a poll of fans conducted by USA Today, Manning was voted the quarterback of the decade by a 45 percent to 34 percent margin. Brady is even overshadowed in his own household."
Ex-mates support Tom Brady
Comment
May 16
Boston Herald
 
"The topic of Tom Brady's offseason commitment was debated a lot last week. On one side, are the critics, be it fans or media members, who say it's nice Brady wants to spend time with his two young sons, but insist that the Patriots quarterback should be in Foxboro full time for the offseason program. They argue that because the Pats had leadership issues last season, they need their primary leader fully committed to working out at Gillette Stadium instead of living a bicoastal existence. They suggest Brady should be around to set the tone for his teammates, new and old. A lot of this talk was spurred by Brady himself in an interview with Peter King for his "Monday Morning Quarterback""
Turning the clock back on Brady
Comment
May 15
Boston Globe
 
"Tom Brady's talked plenty this week. He spoke with Peter King on Monday, and WEEI on Wednesday, and he's made his a lot of his feelings on the football team here and his life away from it clear. Have the priorities of the Patriots' franchise QB changed? Of course, with a family to worry about, they have to a certain degree. Is it enough for you all to fret over? Well, through the magic of Hulu (which directed me to CBS's site), I thought I'd take you guys back to 2007 -- Brady at the height of his powers -- to examine that. Football's obviously an important part of the guy's life. And in this interview he did with 60 Minutes, he showed real recognition of the place it holds. That's why I"
Center has Brady's back
Comment
May 14
Boston Globe
 
"Looking as svelte as an offensive lineman can, Patriots center Dan Koppen joined the growing list of current and former New England players defending Tom Brady's decision not to spend every possible day at Gillette Stadium for the team's voluntary offseason program. Brady has been criticized for working out in Los Angeles, where his older son lives, and traveling the globe with his wife. "I think it's an individual situation,'' said Koppen. "Everybody's got their different things going on, and things change as your life goes. "This is our job, but it's not our family — family's family and work is work. You just have to balance them and I think he does a great job of balancing and doing"
Mates have Tom Brady's back
Comment
May 14
Boston Herald
 
"Patriots quarterback Tom Brady broached the topic on Wednesday, triggering a public debate as to whether his team lacked mental toughness in 2009. Among the players, there is no doubt. Center Dan Koppen and receiver Wes Welker agreed. "When you're on the road and you've got the lead, to lose those, that's just something that hasn't happened around here lately," Koppen said yesterday, discussing the views Brady expressed to WEEI Radio. "That's something that we've got to work on." Asked how a team improves such an issue, Koppen says it happens slowly. "You can work through it," Koppen said. "Late in practices, whether you're doing the right technique or really just doing the assignment,"
Tom Brady likes Patriots' changes
Comment
May 13
Boston Herald
 
"It's a theme that both Patriots coach Bill Belichick and owner Robert Kraft have hit on already this offseason. Yesterday, quarterback Tom Brady echoed the team's need for a more cohesive locker room. "Talking with (newly acquired receiver) Torry Holt, we were talking about some of the Rams teams he played on, and he says, 'You know, we had a lot of great guys on the team,' " Brady said during an interview on WEEI radio. "My comment to him was that, 'To me, that's the only way.' "Playing with a bunch of guys that you really don't enjoy spending time with, that doesn't last very long. Games that we lose in the fourth quarter, games that we lose in the second half, or losing on the road like"
Brady harps on leadership
Comment
May 13
Boston Globe
 
"Patriots quarterback Tom Brady had an early-morning chat on WEEI yesterday, the highlight of which was him discussing leadership, and the team's overall weaknesses in 2009. "All of us, we need to do a better job of leadership,'' he said. "And I was one of the leaders last year, and obviously I sucked at doing that. "So I've got to do a better job at that, I've got to do a better job of playing quarterback. And that's what I'm prepared to do."
Brady: 'Lack of trust' hurt Patriots
Comment
May 12
ESPN.com
 
"Quarterback Tom Brady reiterated Wednesday that he thought last year's New England Patriots team was not mentally tough and, looking back, indicated there was a "lack of trust, lack of confidence" within the team. The Patriots' struggles in the second half of games in 2009 were well chronicled. Of their six losses, they were leading at the half in four of them and tied in another. In addition to their second-half struggles, the Patriots were just 2-6 on the road. "When it comes down to it, games that we lose in the fourth quarter, games that we lose in the second half, or losing on the road like we did, that can be lack of trust, lack of confidence," Brady said in an interview on Boston"
Pats QB knows it's a big year for him and his team.
Comment
May 11
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
 
""Watch your thoughts, for they become words. Watch your words, for they become actions. Watch your actions, for they become habits. Watch your habits, for they become character. Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny." -- Anonymous "We've got to start listening to coach (Bill) Belichick.We've got young kids who are good players. We've got the best football coach of all time. He's got the answers. We as a team have to take the coaching we're being given.'' -- Tom Brady Tom Brady spoke yesterday to Peter King of SI.com, offering a unique perspective on what's going on inside the Patriots locker room. Brady believes the problem with the team lies not in its talent base but in its"
Brady: Listen to Belichick
Comment
May 11
Boston Globe
 
"It doesn't happen often, but when Tom Brady wants to make a point, he makes it. The Patriots quarterback recently spoke to Sports Illustrated — his first comments of the offseason — and twice mentioned he and teammates must be receptive to coaching. Asked about the Patriots' late-season problems, including their 38-17 home loss to Baltimore in the postseason, Brady said, "We've got to start listening to coach [Bill] Belichick. We've got young kids who are good players. We've got the best football coach of all time. He's got the answers. We as a team have to take the coaching we're being given.''"
Home Field advantage
Comment
April 25
Boston Herald
 
"What kind of U.N. environmental ambassador builds a 20,000 square-foot home with a six-car garage, an elevator and a lagoon? Why, that would be the Hub's favorite Pats fan, Gisele Bundchen! And a paparazzo's sneak pics of Bundchen and hubby Tom Brady's gargantuan new Brentwood, Calif., chateau has green activists seeing red "How big a space do two people need?" asked Philip Dowds, a Massachusetts Sierra Club official and professional architect. "A 20,000 square-foot house - the resources that it takes to put it together and the land that it needs, this just can't happen anymore." According to photos taken by Los Angeles shooter Alec Byrne, who said he got a peek at the blueprints, the new"
Stallworth received text from Tom Brady
Comment
April 5
Baltimore Sun
 
"New Ravens wide receiver Donte' Stallworth received a text message from New England quarterback Tom Brady after news broke about him killing a 59-year-old Miami man while driving drunk, according to SportsIllustrated.com Stallworth and Brady were teammates in 2007. The accident occured on March 14, 2009."
Checking in with program
Comment
March 24
Boston Globe
 
"Patriots owner Robert Kraft certainly knew what he was talking about Monday morning when he told a group of reporters over breakfast that Tom Brady would be at Gillette Stadium to begin participating in the team's offseason program before the NFL's annual meeting wrapped up. Brady showed up in Foxborough yesterday. The league meetings end today. Coach Bill Belichick was asked yesterday morning during the AFC coaches' breakfast whether he was comfortable with Brady not taking part in the voluntary workouts from Day One, which was last Monday."
Tom Brady arrives for conditioning program
Comment
March 24
Boston Herald
 
"Tom Brady put the boxing gloves down and arrived at Gillette Stadium yesterday for his first appearance in the Patriots offseason conditioning program. The program began March 15, but the quarterback spent last week in Los Angeles working at a local gym with his own trainers on a regimen that included sparring. The fact he wasn't with his teammates created much debate, even if coach Bill Belichick appeared to shrug at the news. In addition, wide receiver Randy Moss has been working out with the team."
Owner of strong opinions
Comment
March 23
Boston Globe
 
"Robert Kraft has no intention of seeing Tom Brady in another uniform, and more than two months later, the loss to the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the playoffs still smarts. Those were two of the many topics the Patriots owner touched on yesterday at the NFL's annual meeting. Kraft made it clear the Patriots plan on holding onto The Franchise."
Kraft-ing a Tom Brady plan
Comment
March 23
Boston Herald
 
"With Tom Brady's contract due to expire following the 2010 season, Patriots owner Robert Kraft realizes the significance of keeping the franchise quarterback in Foxboro for the foreseeable future. The 32-year-old Brady, who signed a six-year, $60 million extension in 2005, could be headed to free agency or have the franchise tag placed on him if unsigned. Unlike Colts owner Bob Irsay, who guaranteed Indianapolis would make free agent-to-be Peyton Manning the highest-paid quarterback in the league, Kraft yesterday took a more cautiously optimistic route with his QB. "Let's put it like this: Tom Brady is going to be a part of this franchise. He wants to be. We want him," Kraft said during a"
Patriots CEO 'confident' on getting a Tom Brady extension
Comment
March 22
Boston Herald
 
"Patriots owner Robert Kraft understands Tom Brady is now a family man, but said earlier today he would prefer his quarterback be in Foxboro taking part in the team's offseason program. That was just one of the interesting nuggets Kraft dropped during a breakfast with the Boston media a short time ago at the NFL League Meetings. Brady's contract also was on the table, and the Pats' CEO talked about having confidence an extension would get done. Beyond that, Kraft touched on a number of other subjects including the team's lack of chemistry, the meaning of re-signing Vince Wilfork, the devastating nature of the playoff loss to Baltimore, and even Bill Belichick's future at the helm. He also"
Tom Brady in LA, not Foxboro workouts
Comment
March 18
Boston Herald
 
"While the Patriots' voluntary offseason workout progam began Monday, quarterback Tom Brady has yet to report and is currently in Los Angeles. Brady, who was photographed walking his new dog yesterday in LA traditionally is one of the first players to participate and often won the preferred parking space awarded to players with the best offseason workout record. A few years back, Brady said he surrendered the parking space because he didn't "compete" for it. Brady stressed that he still does the required training, just not always in Foxboro because his lifestyle has changed with a wife and two children. Veteran wide receiver David Patten, who re-signed with the Patriots last month, said"
Why doesn't Tom just call the plays?
Comment
February 11
Boston Globe
 
"Yesterday, my colleagues Chris Gasper and Charlie Pierce had a spirited debate on the coordinator situation -- or lack of one -- on the Patriots coaching staff. And one point that was raised was the old "Why don't they just hand control over to Tom Brady?" On the surface, it makes sense. He'll be in his 11th year as a Patriot, and 10th year as a starter, in 2010, and has as good a grasp of the team's offense as anyone could hope. So why not? I think, and this is just from my own knowledge of the game, it's because the Patriots sub guys in and out far too much, in order to play the matchup game they favor, for the quarterback to have too much control. See, you can charge the quarterback"
Bonus could affect Tom Brady talks
Comment
February 9
ESPN.com
 
"With quarterback Tom Brady entering the final year of his contract with the New England Patriots, the sides are expected to negotiate an extension that will likely make him one of the highest paid players in the NFL. The question is when those talks will truly heat up. The presence of a $3 million roster bonus could potentially take negotiations to a higher level. Brady is due the roster bonus on March 5, which is the first official day of the 2010 league year."
Robert Kraft won't talk about a new Tom Brady deal
Comment
February 6
Boston Herald
 
"Patriots owner Robert Kraft attended yesterday's State of the NFL meeting led by commissioner Roger Goodell, spending time reminiscing that eight years ago the Patriots were celebrating a Super Bowl. Asked if the Pats are poised to return to that elite level, Kraft said, "I hope so. That's the plan." When told that Colts owner Jim Irsay said Manning would be the NFL's highest paid player, Kraft wouldn't discuss a potential deal for quarterback Tom Brady. "I'm not going there," Kraft said. "There's a time and place for that." . . . Patriots running back Fred Taylor admitted his surgically repaired ankle is still not 100 percent. After stopping by radio row yesterday to promote Sprint"
Brady must apply pocket pressure to Patriots
Comment
January 27
Boston Globe
 
"Before Patriots quarterback Tom Brady started playing flag football yesterday with 20 Boston-area kids as part of a charitable promotion sponsored by smartwater, he gathered the children in a huddle at center court of the Tobin Community Center gym and attempted to offer some incentive, beyond catching a pass from an iconic NFL QB, for the first touchdown. "Whoever scores a touchdown gets...we'll have to come up with something," said Brady. Right then one of the children blurted out, "Money.""
Brady's injuries are healing well
Comment
January 26
Boston Globe
 
"At first, most of the 20 kids playing flag football yesterday at the Tobin Community Center didn't notice when the tall man walked into the gym and ambled to the middle of the court. A few stopped, stared, and staggered toward him, as if compelled by a magnetic force. Slowly, they all realized what was happening: Tom Brady had come to visit them. Brady would rather have postponed the visit to Roxbury by a couple of weeks and been in Foxborough, preparing for a Super Bowl return instead of making a charitable appearance. But the Patriots' first-round playoff loss placed him in the unfamiliar position of spectator and forced him to confront the offseason's issues sooner than he hoped."
Grateful city kids on receiving end
Comment
January 26
Boston Herald
 
"The Patriots are looking for some receiving help. Too bad Brandon Guerrero wasn't a bit older. The 9-year-old from Dorchester easily pulled in a long Tom Brady bomb yesterday during a flag football session the Patriots quarterback held with a gymful of adoring youth at the Tobin Community Center. Brady made a surprise visit to the Roxbury facility to make a $30,000 donation that benefitted Boston Centers for Youth & Families. He had teamed with smartwater to create the "smartwater zero sack give back" initiative. Smartwater had pledged $5,000 for each game Brady finished without being sacked. So yesterday he dropped in for a visit, talked with the kids, autographed their No. 12 smartwater"
Tom Brady tosses around Pats, future key topics
Comment
January 26
Boston Herald
 
"Two teams are going to the Super Bowl, and Tom Brady doesn't play quarterback for either of them. That fact clearly doesn't sit well with the Patriots quarterback. With a little time to sit back and reflect, and also to watch the games the past few weeks, Brady is well aware how the Pats compare with Super Bowl finalists Indianapolis and New Orleans. He knows the Pats don't measure up. He hopes his teammates also have taken stock of that. "You never want to rationalize a season. But in reality, we didn't deserve (to go to the Super Bowl). We didn't earn it, which (looking at) the teams that are in, they earned it," Brady said yesterday during a charity appearance at the Tobin Community"
Tom Brady out of Pro Bowl
Comment
January 20
Boston Herald
 
"Battered and bruised all season, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has pulled out of the Pro Bowl with an injury. He had struggled with his health in 2009, from his ring finger to his shoulder to his ribs. Brady made his fifth Pro Bowl after throwing for 4,398 yards with 28 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, despite being a regular on the injury report. The Pro Bowl does not say which injury held a player out."
There's a big issue on tap: Wilfork
Comment
January 11
Boston Globe
 
"As the final seconds ticked off the clock of the Patriots' 33-14 playoff loss to the Ravens yesterday, reality hit nose tackle Vince Wilfork. For six seasons, Wilfork has been a key part of the defensive line. A first-round draft pick out of the University of Miami in 2004, he is facing a career decision. His rookie contract is up and he is eligible to become an unrestricted free agent. "As the time ticked off that clock, it kinda dawned on me,'' Wilfork said after a 13-tackle effort. "I told my teammates, the guys I play with on that defense, 'I don't know if this is the last game I play with you or not, but if it is, man, I love you and I'm gonna miss you.' We'll go from here and see"
In the end, they're mere mortals
Comment
January 11
Boston Globe
 
"It was great while it lasted, but even a pigheaded Patriots pigskin buff must acknowledge that the dynasty is over. There was a time, not long ago, when there was a Patriot Way. Now the Patriots have lost their way. They are just another one-and-out playoff team, and not a likable one at that. That black night in the desert in Glendale, Ariz., two years ago? That was it. Since the pursuit of perfection fell short in Super Bowl XLII, the Patriots have been outside the circle of NFL royalty. This is the way the late commissioner Pete Rozelle envisioned things when he pushed for parity at the exclusion of excellence. The once-great Patriots are now first-round playoff fodder."
Long road to recovery
Comment
January 11
Boston Herald
 
"Maybe it was wishful thinking the ills of the regular season would magically disappear during the playoffs, that the Patriots [team stats] would draw on their glorious past and conjure a winning formula. After all, with Bill Belichick and Tom Brady on the sideline, the assumption is anything can happen. However, yesterday's 33-14 drubbing by the Baltimore Ravens at bone-chilling Gillette Stadium not only makes you wonder how far the Patriots have dropped from their lofty status as three-time Super Bowl winners, but how long it's going to take for them to return to that elite level. "The era is over!" Baltimore receiver and former Patriot Kelley Washington jubilantly shouted as he ran off"
Pats QB won't make excuses
Comment
January 11
Boston Herald
 columnist Steve Buckley
"He is the quarterback of the decade for the team of the decade. He is married to the model of the decade. Whatever car he drives, chances are it was recently named Motor Trend car of the decade. But it is a bruised Tom Brady - bruised physically, no doubt bruised mentally - who limps off into his offseason sunset. The Patriots season ended disastrously yesterday at Gillette Stadium via a humiliating 33-14 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. For the quarterback of the decade, it ended with numbers that harken back to the days of Tommy Hodson and Marc Wilson: 23-for-42 passing for 154 yards, with two touchdowns but three interceptions and a lost fumble. Those long, majestic bombs from Brady to"
Right now, Brady is in a good place
Comment
January 7
Boston Globe
 
"He has not lost a game on Route 1 since 2006. That was before Gisele, before Spygate, before Bernard Pollard. Tom Brady is almost perfect at Gillette Stadium. The last time he lost any home game was back when we still took Eric Mangini seriously: Nov. 12, 2006 (Jets 17, Patriots 14). Brady has won 22 straight at the Razor, and he has never lost a playoff game in Foxborough. "We've played really well over the years here, and we've played pretty well in the playoffs, too,'' Brady said yesterday. "And I think we've always played well in the cold weather, because we're all out here practicing every day and we get used to the conditions. The crowd gives us a big boost, no doubt.''"
Tom Brady laughs off referee talk
Comment
January 7
Boston Herald
 
"Patriots quarterback Tom Brady still regrets asking the officials for roughing the passer penalties during the earlier meeting with the Ravens, but now he can laugh at himself. "Oh, I'm begging for preferential treatment if they'll give it to me," said Brady yesterday, joking with Ravens reporters on a conference call. "I just don't think they'll give it to me all the time. So I'm trying to butter up those officials so we do get a call once in a while. If it helps our team win, I'm all for it." Brady made his remarks while laughing, but Ravens fans may not laugh with him. During the six-point win, two Pats scoring drives were kept alive because of roughing penalties. Former teammate Rodney"
Tom Brady out front for playoff push
Comment
January 7
Boston Herald
 columnist Ron Borges
"Tom Brady looks at January football at Gillette Stadium the way Sitting Bull looked at Little Big Horn: home-field advantage. Sitting Bull was 1-0 on his home turf, upsetting Gen. George Custer's 7th Cavalry on June 25, 1876, but it was downhill for the Lakota Sioux after that. Brady, on the other hand, is 8-0 at home in January games, the only upset win in that streak being his first victory, the snowy "Tuck Rule" victory against the Oakland Raiders on Jan. 19, 2002, at old Foxboro Stadium. That is the day the first chapter of The Legend was penned and it has continued for Brady's tribe for the better part of the past decade with, he hopes, a new one to be written on Sunday against the"
Brady and Patriots Ready for Life Without Welker
Comment
January 7
New York Times
 
"Tom Brady won the N.F.L.'s Comeback Player of the Year award Wednesday a few hours before Wes Welker went on injured reserve. The intersection of their injuries may determine how far the Patriots go in the playoffs. The quarterback and the receiver are close friends, and their chemistry is an underpinning of the offense. When Welker missed two games earlier this season, the offense sputtered and Brady looked rusty. He was hurried. He was unsure. He was un-Brady. But when Welker played, he led the N.F.L. with 123 receptions, his short routes over the middle providing the defining snapshot of the offense and allowing Brady to slip into the familiar rhythm that bedevils opponents. But with"