On the NFL Network on Wednesday, the NFL recapped the list of of top draft steals of all time. Of course it was Tom Brady who was picked as the number one "steal" of the draft of all time. As we all know Brady was taken in the sixth round (199th overall) of the 2000 draft, and we know the rest of the story.
Looking back at the footage of Brady, it's pretty funny to see how scrawny he was and how "unatheletic" he apeared. They showed footage from the combine that year, and I was unaware that Brady ran a 5.2 40-yard dash. They called Brady's run a "pedestrian pace", as apparently most QB's run at least 5.0 or under).
Obviously we know that it was the late quarterbacks coach, Dick Rehbein, who discovered Brady for the Patriots. Thankfully he left us with a legacy that we all appreciate, with three titles and an undefeated regular football season.
Meanwhile the names taken ahead of Brady are funny to read. There were six quarterbacks taken ahead of Brady that year, with Chris Redman (Ravens), Marc Bulger (Rams), Chad Pennington (Jets), Giovanni Carmazzi (49ers), Tee Martin (Pittsburgh), and Spurgeon Wynn (Browns) rounding out that list.
Pretty Amazing. I'm not sure, but I'd be willing to bet that most of the GM's behind those decisions are no longer with those teams.
As Brady slipped down the list, when it finally came time to make the selection, Scott Pioli said in the presentation that he felt that he was just too good of a value to pass up.
We're all glad they didn't. For anyone who'd like to view it, the video is available by Clicking Here. Embedded below is Tom Brady's recruitment video which most of you have seen, but it's still fun to watch.
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