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I think the right comparison is more along the lines of Nolan Ryan who was a precursor to Brady in terms of how he maintained his health.
For those unaware, Nolan Ryan was a dominating fastball pitcher who kept his fastball until he retired at age 46 - when practically all fastball pitchers lose their fastball sometime in their thirties. The only old pitchers you see are those who rely on guile (e.g. Tim Wakefield and his knuckleball) or placement; you don't see old pitchers blowing the ball by the batter.
I keep hearing people talk about how Brady will age and they just don't get it. Comparisons to players who do conventional conditioning is pretty much irrelevant. We only catch glimpses of how different Tom Brady is, but when we do it's a "wow" moment. Brady's arm doesn't hurt now and it hurt all the time when he was 25? Brady now runs a sub 5 second 40 when his combine time was around 5.2? Brady has improved on every measurable every year for the past 3 years? Brady gets hammered time and again against teams like Houston and Atlanta and plays his best football in the fourth quarter rendering all those hits totally irrelevant on his late game performance?
The data is out there, folks. The example (Nolan Ryan - who tried to do what Brady is doing but with less advanced science) is there for the world to see. Use the data to make an informed opinion. Stop making comparisons to people who lead very different lives with totally different training and diet techniques.
We don't know how long this can last. But, in my opinion, to think TB is only going to be able to physically play at a high level for about 2 more years is either ignorance or bordering on foolishness based on what we DO know.
For those unaware, Nolan Ryan was a dominating fastball pitcher who kept his fastball until he retired at age 46 - when practically all fastball pitchers lose their fastball sometime in their thirties. The only old pitchers you see are those who rely on guile (e.g. Tim Wakefield and his knuckleball) or placement; you don't see old pitchers blowing the ball by the batter.
I keep hearing people talk about how Brady will age and they just don't get it. Comparisons to players who do conventional conditioning is pretty much irrelevant. We only catch glimpses of how different Tom Brady is, but when we do it's a "wow" moment. Brady's arm doesn't hurt now and it hurt all the time when he was 25? Brady now runs a sub 5 second 40 when his combine time was around 5.2? Brady has improved on every measurable every year for the past 3 years? Brady gets hammered time and again against teams like Houston and Atlanta and plays his best football in the fourth quarter rendering all those hits totally irrelevant on his late game performance?
The data is out there, folks. The example (Nolan Ryan - who tried to do what Brady is doing but with less advanced science) is there for the world to see. Use the data to make an informed opinion. Stop making comparisons to people who lead very different lives with totally different training and diet techniques.
We don't know how long this can last. But, in my opinion, to think TB is only going to be able to physically play at a high level for about 2 more years is either ignorance or bordering on foolishness based on what we DO know.
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