I don't think any of us posting here have the slightest idea about what it really takes to succeed in the NFL at the level at which Tom Brady has succeeded.
We can have some vague idea of the roles that skill, commitment, hard work, teammates, coaching, the competition...and yes, a little luck...play, but we really can't understand the intangible mix that has to come together to produce greatness and Championships in this very difficult sport.
Whatever that mix is, Brady clearly has found it. The numbers he put up this year (number two in ESPN's QBR, number six by the traditional Pass Rating measure) suggest that his skills are still where they need to be, as they have been for several years.
Why did he win three League Championships in his first four years as starter without winning another over the next eight (seven) years, despite there more trips to the AFCCG and two more to the SB?
I don't know for sure, and neither does anyone else posting in this thread, but it has something to do with how all the pieces did or didn't come together at the right time.
Because we are blessed with Brady and Belichick, I sometimes also think we tend to overlook the fact that "the other guys are pretty darn good too." That's why I defended Flacco out here before the AFCCG and why I have always come to Peyton's defense when the Peyton Hate gets a little too much to stomach. Flacco isn't in Brady or P. Manning's class, but he sure isn't the doofus some were painting him to be.
So, let's stop this talk about mental blocks or whatever. I can only imagine that those who know Brady the best would just laugh at that suggestion, if they even wasted their time reading it.
