Centennial Legends: Tom Brady - The Greatest of All Time – May 2023

NEEDLESS TO SAY, WHEN TOM BRADY WAS DRAFTED 199th overall in the 2000 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots, no one expected him to become the greatest football player of all time. Surely, not even Tom Brady believed that.

But Brady did believe he could become the Patriots' franchise quarterback, even after the starter in front of him signed the largest contract in league history. He believed he could lead the Patriots to a Super Bowl victory—and then, over the years, five more. He believed that two decades into his NFL career, he could switch teams for the first time and win a championship with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Again and again and again, Tom Brady's belief was rewarded. And each time that it was, he immediately moved on to his next goal. "The joys of winning are great, but I sweep those under the rug so fast," Brady said in the 2018 docuseries Tom vs. Time. "There's a brief moment in time where I enjoy the experience of winning. And then I'm thinking about the next game and I'm thinking about winning again."

Tom Brady always believed.