Transformation Tuesday: Tom Brady

From Nothing to Something

Tom Brady: 4-time Super Bowl Champion and 3-time Super Bowl MVP. Yeah, right, said any fan of football in the late 90's and early 00's. Well, yeah, Tom Brady just won the 4th Super Bowl of his career, tying Terry Bradshaw and Joe Montana for the most by a quarterback. Brady also won his 3rd Super Bowl MVP, now sharing the record with none-other than Joe Montana. Brady definitely had a slow start to his career, but over the years, you have seen tremendous improvements. Tom Brady, a young California kid, has come a long way. 

Before the NFL

Brady attended Junípero Serro High School where he was a three-sport athlete, playing baseball, basketball, and football. He was even drafted by the Montreal Expos as a catcher. Brady, obviously passed on baseball. Instead, he then attended the University of Michigan to play football. Brady would not find the field for the first two years of college, which led to severe frustration and anxiety. He would even go as far as to hire a sports physiologist. However, Brady would become the starter in his junior year, where he broke various records, including one for the most completions in a season, with 214. The Michigan star would go on to win Citrus and Orange Bowls. Next, he would enter the 2000 NFL Draft.

NFL Career

The image above is a very popular photo. Brady, at 6'0" and 211 pounds, is seen out-of-shape and not NFL-ready. Brady would look to overcome such challenges in his career. At the NFL Combine, Brady ran a historically low 5.28 40-yard dash. He also had a 24.5 vertical leap. Overall, he put up a terrible showing. But still, in the 2000 NFL Draft, Brady was selected with the 199th pick in the 6th round, by the New England Patriots. Here, he united with Bill Belicheck, who we all know had a long term plan for Brady (much like we have seen with Jimmy Garoppolo now). In his rookie season, Brady again couldn't find the field. But during the 2001 season, his time had finally come. 

Super Bowl #1

Brady would replace the injured Drew Bledsoe in Week 2. Brady would secure the the starting job with outstanding play. He finished the season with 2,843 yards and 18 touchdowns. In his first playoff game, Brady would be subject to one of the most controversial plays in NFL history, the Tuck Rule. Down by three in the 4th quarter and driving, Brady fumbled the ball, but was eventually overturned and changed to a incomplete pass. Brady would win that game and the next, and was going to Super Bowl XXXVI. This game was a tight one, and it came down to the end. Brady, started at their own 17 yard line with 1:21 left and no timeouts, drove down field to set up a game-winning field goal by Adam Vinatieri. This was Brady's first Super Bowl win and the first of his Super Bowl MVP's. 

Super Bowl #2

The New England Patriots started out 2-2, but then won 12 straight games to finish 14-2. Brady would return to the Super Bowl in the 2003 Playoffs for Super Bowl XXXVIII. Brady cruised through the AFC Divisional and Conference Championships games against the Titans and Colts. Once again, the ball was put in Tom Brady's hands. With the game knotted up at 29 and 1:08 to go, Brady drove his team down field for another game-winning field goal, a 32-29 victory over the Panthers. Brady totaled 354 yards and 3 touchdowns. Brady would again win Super Bowl MVP. Now, Brady was 2 for 2 in Super Bowls.

Super Bowl #3

The following year, Brady and the Pats cruised through opponents, again finishing 14-2. The New England Patriots again found themselves in the Super Bowl, this time facing the Philadelphia Eagles. Brady would get the job done again, winning Super Bowl XXXIX. Brady threw for 236 yards and 2 touchdowns. However, he did not win MVP honors, for that went to a Tom Brady receiver, Deion Branch. Branch caught 11 passes for 133 receiving yards. This was the Patriots 3rd title in the last 4 years. 

Super Bowl #4

The Patriots would not return to the Super Bowl again until 2007, this time with Randy Moss, Dontè Stallworth, and Wes Welker. This Super Bowl had a different feeling to it. The Pats were trying to complete a perfect season, but the New York Football Giants were in their path. In Super Bowl XLII, it would be the Giants, and not the Patriots, winning the Super Bowl. Of course, it was Eli Manning leading a game-winning drive, with an outstanding helmet-catch by David Tyree. Brady would finish with 266 yards, 1 touchdown, and his first Super Bowl loss. Brady was now 3-1 in his Super Bowl career.

Super Bowl #5

Brady's Patriots would once again meet Eli Manning's Giants in the Super Bowl. This time, it was Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis. Brady played well the entire game, but again fell victim to Eli Manning's late game heroics. It was a Mario Manningham sideline catch and a Ahmad Bradshaw touchdown that would deliver the final knockout punch. Most notably, Brady had 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. This would drop Brady to a 3-2 Super Bowl record. He was 0-2 against the Giants and Eli Manning. He will forever remember the Tyree and Manningham catches that would hold him from being 5-0 in the Super Bowl.

Super Bowl #6

All of that leads us to now, a Super Bowl XLIX matchup with the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks and their number 1 defense were coming off their first Super Bowl win against the number 1 offense Denver Broncos. The first half ended with Russell Wilson and Tom Brady trading blows. The game was tied 14-14. Early in the fourth quarter, the Patriots found themselves in a hole, down 24-14. Once again, it was Brady time, something we were all used to seeing on the big stage. Brady drives down the field with ease. Boom, one touchdown, and it is already 24-21. A defensive stop and the ball has found Brady again. With no more than 4 minutes left in the game, Brady just picks apart Seattle and replacement corner Tharold Simon for another touchdown. Well, Brady's done it again. However, Russell Wilson and the Seahawks had other plans. Wilson and Jermaine Kearse hook up on a tremendous bobbling catch in the red-zone. It is not the first time Brady's seen something like this. Then, on the 1-yard line, Wilson is picked off by Malcolm Butler, the savior. Brady is a 4-time Super Bowl Champion and a 3-time Super Bowl MVP, finishing with all 4 Patriot touchdowns. 

In the Long Run...

From a 6th-round pick, to the picture above.

Brady is definitely the greatest playoff QB of all-time, better than Montana and Bradshaw. Brady should really be 6-0 in the Super Bowl, but it just wasn't meant to happen, and he has to live with it. The great part about it, is that he's 37 years young and still has plenty of football left. Tom Brady: A 4-time Super Bowl Champion and a 3-time Super Bowl MVP. Yeah, right. 

Follow Me on Twitter

@_SwagggyT