When did you KNOW Tom Brady was a special QB?

[NFL Mystique]

In otherwords, at what point/season/moment made you say "this guy is a top 5 QB in the league and will be a force for years."?

I wasn't watching football. But the Carolina SB sticks out as that moment. He carried the team when the defense was getting shredded consistently. The last drive felt like it was inevitable he would come through.

 

[signbabybrady]

After Belichick had coached him through 2 training camps. And especially as the year went on his QB coach really started making him look like the unstoppable Brady. It was all Bill!

 

[Dec54]

What is the point of this. Its all in the past, we know he is the GOAT. But he is yesterday. Look to the future not the past

 

[Betterthanmost]

When he left...

 

[Hugepatsfan]

The 2005 and 2006 seasons when the team around him had a bit of a lull was when I really started to think he was like a true MVP, all time great level player. From 01-03 I obviously thought he was very good, but I couldn't really discern if he was truly best of the best vs. fortunate to be on great teams. 2004 it felt like he really started to be a truly elite individual player but it was still on an all time stacked team. 05/06 were weaker years for the team comparatively (and 06 for him statistically) but that was when I felt he was really elevating things around him and the unquestioned "straw that stirs the drink" type of player on teams making playoff runs. Then obviously 2007 happened where they really built around him for the first time.

Not going to lie though, I thought he hit a (relative) lull after the injury. When he came back from injury in 2009 I thought he was kind of a **** about getting hit for a few years. I honestly think in 2014 when the threat of Jimmy G came on he snapped out of that funk and really got back to that level of being fearless in the pocket. I think from 09-13 other QBs had a case for being better than him. 2017 through that first year in Tampa was when I felt he was the unquestioned best in the league and truly the best player of all time individually.

 

[Pape]

my brother called it november 25, 2001 when we were driving home from the saints game...

i knew it when he hit david givens for a TD in the second quarter of sb 36...

 

[sb1]

Day 1 as a starter

 

[signbabybrady]

 

[AQPE]

Overtime win against the (Doug Flutie) Chargers.

My buddy and I went golfing and got to the car late in the fourth quarter. We had about a 45 minute drive. By the time we got back Brady had engineered a comeback to get to OT and we were just sitting in the driveway listening to it play out. We could see our wives watching it inside but we refused to leave the car until it was over and they refused to get up and get us. They weren’t big football fans but knew just like we did that this was something pretty special. After it was over we went to a favorite pub as planned and all we could hear there was people talking about what he did in that game.

 

[Clonamery]

1999 - Michigan, reason was Brady's fortitude.

(6) Penn State (H) v (16) Michigan (A)

Under 10 minutes left in the game, PS 27 - MI 17, Brady had just thrown a pick 6.

Michigan marches down the field and TB runs it in from the 5 yd line to make it 27-24 with 3:30 left.

The Michigan defense got the ball back and TB threw an 11 yd TD pass with 1:30 left. MI won 31-27. Brady

(8) Michigan won the Orange Bowl a few weeks later in OT v (5) Alabama. Brady threw 4 TDs.

 

[1960Pats]

What is the point of this. Its all in the past, we know he is the GOAT. But he is yesterday. Look to the future not the past

I'll be talking about him 'till the day I die. Same with hundreds of other great players from the past.

 

[NFL Mystique]

The 2005 and 2006 seasons when the team around him had a bit of a lull was when I really started to think he was like a true MVP, all time great level player. From 01-03 I obviously thought he was very good, but I couldn't really discern if he was truly best of the best vs. fortunate to be on great teams. 2004 it felt like he really started to be a truly elite individual player but it was still on an all time stacked team. 05/06 were weaker years for the team comparatively (and 06 for him statistically) but that was when I felt he was really elevating things around him and the unquestioned "straw that stirs the drink" type of player on teams making playoff runs. Then obviously 2007 happened where they really built around him for the first time.

Not going to lie though, I thought he hit a (relative) lull after the injury. When he came back from injury in 2009 I thought he was kind of a **** about getting hit for a few years. I honestly think in 2014 when the threat of Jimmy G came on he snapped out of that funk and really got back to that level of being fearless in the pocket. I think from 09-13 other QBs had a case for being better than him. 2017 through that first year in Tampa was when I felt he was the unquestioned best in the league and truly the best player of all time individually.

In 2010 he had probably his most efficient season as MVP. But it ended with a second straight one and done playoff stinker. 2012-2013 was when chatter of his decline began. He looked like a shell of himself during that KC game in 2014.

Then.....Tom Brady led Patriot teams went 81-21 (In legit games which also include the postseason). 3/4 SB titles with 2 SB MVP's. 2 OPOY awards. 1st team all-pro and a second team all-pro. Overcame ten point deficit against a legendary defense in that SB 49 win. Of course 28-3 in 2016. Overcoming a 28-3 deficit & forcing Roger to hand the Lombardi trophy to the man he suspended, while getting booed mercilessly, was something to behold.

In 2019, a 42 year old QB went 12-4 with bums at receiver. His final stats were: 24 TD's with 8 picks. 61% completion percentage. Those stats would get most QB's 70 million per year if they were eligible. Yet for Tom Brady, it was a "down year". I think that shows his true greatness. A bad year for him would be an awesome year for most other QB's.

 

[Brick27]

When I saw Galynn deliver him. You just knew.

 

[Trocadile]

After the San Diego game in 2001, I remember saying to my brother, that was the best quarterback play I've ever seen from a Patriot (and I go back to Babe Parilli). I remember they had no run game that day, the defense couldn't stop Flutie and the special teams had a couple screwups - but Brady won the game.