Tom Brady’s Helping Hand
May 13th, 2021
“Follow me guys and we will win.”
It is no surprise that Bucs quarterback Tom Brady, while appearing on a podcast devoted to watches, discussed time.
The park-violating, home-invading, NFLPA-ignoring, down-forgetting, handshake-stiffing, jet-ski-losing, biscuit-baking, tequila-shooting, smartphone-phobic, waffle-grilling, trophy-throwing, roller coaster-scared, numbers-rules-peeved, Bucs-Super-Bowl-winning quarterback spoke of his time as a kid and his time as an adult, and how he hopes to spend his time in his post-football life, whenever that may come (he admitted the prospect of living life not consumed by football is uncomfortable).
Now an aging but still dominant quarterback, Brady believes it is part of his life’s mission to give back to the game. It’s a big reason, he detailed on the podcast “Hodinkee Radio,” why he chose play for the Bucs.
“I have had so many players impact me,” Brady began. “Now I’m an older player. I want to impact them. Cause they are still aspiring in their career. So that’s part of the joy that I still have in playing football.
“Yeah, a lot of it is throwing the football. But a lot of it is being a mentor. If you can impact people in a positive way, the world is a better place for it.”
Brady admitted it was both frightening and exciting leaving the Belicheats after two decades and coming to a new team in a new state and to play in a new conference.
His new club was known much more for losing than winning.
“Exciting, scary — I was anxious,” Brady said of coming to Tampa Bay. “I wanted to get to work. There was a pandemic. We couldn’t even meet as coaches and players.
“I was anxious I wasn’t going to know the playbook. Training camp started and I barely knew the plays.”
But Brady said his desire to help younger players develop was a motivator in signing with the Bucs. He saw the Bucs had talent but for some reason couldn’t mold it to win consistently.
A chance to help turn a talented loser into a winner appealed to him, and to the Bucs, Brady said.
“So when I went to Tampa, I had taken all of this 20 years of experience from one particular place where I had a lot of success and I was going to a different place that I thought I could really help,” Brady said. “I thought I could help the players. I thought I could help the culture of the team. That’s why they brought me there.”
Early in Brady’s Tampa Bay tenure, Joe heard the stories of Brady telling Chris Godwin and other receivers to keep pumping their arms while running routes to throw off defensive backs — little things that add up to big results that were not being done previously.
So Joe is guessing after hearing Brady say how much he wants to help younger players, the fact that he reached out to rookie quarterback Kyle Trask to work out shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.
Brady said he wanted to make an impact on the culture of the organization. Joe believes Brady’s impact has been nothing short of monumental.
May 13th, 2021 at 1:42 pm
i used to hate the man, but now how can you not love TB12? i was wrong about a lot, especially him. Never been more happy about being wrong in my life.
Go Bucs!!!!!!
May 13th, 2021 at 1:54 pm
Joe, I spent 20yrs hating TB12 in NE…I hated the fact that the Bucs FO drooled over the potential of luring him away from the Belicheats….I hated the thought of paying his retirement contract that the Belicheats were not so eager to do themsleves – as Father Time is undefeated & 40+ yr old QB’s are RARELY successful – let alone 43+ yr old QB’s. (They generally fall off the age/performance cliff rapidly, like a baseball pitcher that loses his fastball…They generally have to rely on savvy vs arm talent!)…TB12 stayed 1 step ahead the whole time.
But the Brady Affect to the Bucs team & organization is undeniable…The Glazers, Licht, BA & staff pulled a blind royal flush w/ everything pushed in the pot…It’s been a remarkable yr+ of watching the transformation from hapless to SB champs.
Let’s hope he has 2 more good ones left in the tank & his mentorship is felt the next decade+!
May 13th, 2021 at 1:57 pm
Nice humble pie story, Evolving. Most of us had no idea what an all round positive influence he would become. “Monumental” is right.
May 13th, 2021 at 2:02 pm
Agree. Never a brady or pats fan before this season
They always one. Respected it of course but hated the success when we were so bad for so long.
But when he signed i expected things would get better
How amazing that he led us to a super bowl in first year
The losing(est) franchise in all 4 major sports. To super bowl champs with no offseason
He is the goat
Its funny to see the comments in open threads at beginning of year
“Weenie arm”. “Noodle arm”. “Bust”. “Waste and bring back jameis”
How clueless some homers are 😂
And even better are the people who too this day think he is brad johnson …just another qb wherein the rest of team was now the reason for our success
When the rest of team got what one winning season in past how many losing years!
May 13th, 2021 at 2:02 pm
Won^
May 13th, 2021 at 2:04 pm
THE GOAT!!!!!
GO BUCS!!!!!
May 13th, 2021 at 2:05 pm
When you compare the throws that Brady made all of last season to the ones that Trask made all of last year. They are exactly the same.
And Trask was throwing to equally talented talent.
IF Brady can influence Trask off the field. I believe Trask has more than enough ON the field Talent to succeed.
I really want to see what Trask can do after 2 or 3 years behind Brady.
Imagine the Brady legacy would be insurmountable if his hand picked replacement goes on to dominate. WOWZERS
May 13th, 2021 at 2:23 pm
Catcard
I think you just spoke for all us Buc fans. Very well said.
Bird
All the same adjectives and comments now being used on Kyle Trask. Let it play out first. And as a Buc fan , why wouldn’t you want this kid to be the real deal? He’s ours now
May 13th, 2021 at 2:26 pm
@”J believes Brady’s impact has been nothing short of monumental.”
——————-
“MONUMENTAL” : the best adjective J has used to describe TB12 and his impact.
I will not even try to find better one, but like to add that WE LOVE TB12.
May 13th, 2021 at 2:29 pm
Insightful candor there by the GOAT.
Joe thanks for sifting through a bunch of boring watch talk to bring your readers these gems. Its that level of dedication that makes JBF as good as it is. Hat tip sir(s).
May 13th, 2021 at 2:30 pm
“And Trask was throwing to equally talented talent. ”
One of the more moronic statements made on this site.
The 8-4 UF Gators had equal talent to the 14-5 Super Bowl LV champions.
May 13th, 2021 at 2:34 pm
THE MAN!
May 13th, 2021 at 2:34 pm
The effect he had on the OL is insane too. Obviously adding wirfs helped but I thought Brady would get killed behind that line. Turns out Jameis holding the ball too long really was a problem.
May 13th, 2021 at 2:36 pm
A wise man named Dennis Reynolds once said, “The Bucs haven’t even begun to peak…Trust me, when they peak, we’re all gonna feel it. They’re gonna peak so hard”
May 13th, 2021 at 2:45 pm
I think 2 more years is the perfect number for Brady. I can’t see Brady walking away after this year and also think Brady wants to avoid that image of the wheels falling off if he stays too long.
May 13th, 2021 at 3:35 pm
One man came to town …… He got them to believe they could win…… the rest is history ………. So Cool !!!!
May 13th, 2021 at 4:04 pm
The legend grows. They say one person can change the world. He proved he can change not just an entire team, but city.
May 13th, 2021 at 4:11 pm
listened the all 40 min interview with hodinkee… thanks J for the link, wow what a man, so much greatness in one man.. not only great athlete/player, but even better man/human. we are soooo lucky this guy is in our city, in our team, plying as a buccaneers. I hope more young players learn from him, and absorbed as much as they can because they are so lucky to be in the same locker room, with this great man,mentor,coach,player…
May 13th, 2021 at 4:13 pm
Always been a Brady fan #2 behind Eric Dickerson. Like his calm his leadership his intelligence and his inner strength. To quench his thirst for the game after he retires he should become the next head coach of the Bucs and win him another 10 Superbowls. He could do it. I’d cheer him on
May 13th, 2021 at 4:41 pm
I have to admit, I was just a bit skeptical when we first signed Brady…..his age….and our losing culture didn’t seem to match up so well….but, it didn’t take long for me to realize that his leadership skills far outweighed every obstacle.
I truly believe he will have an impact on the Bucs organization long after he is gone.
May 13th, 2021 at 5:07 pm
Pickgrin:
Thank you!
May 13th, 2021 at 5:16 pm
Monumental is right. Do the right thing kids even when nobody’s watching.
May 13th, 2021 at 5:26 pm
Am I being censored? Let me try again. Money talks, bs walks. Brady is a money player in every sense of the word. Player, person and even coach. He is the real deal.
May 13th, 2021 at 5:28 pm
Haha, I said b—- s— walks on the first try. My bad.
May 13th, 2021 at 8:05 pm
The moment I knew Brady was on the market I thought his place was Tampa if for no other reason just to change the culture. I would’ve been satisfied with a playoff win, now I want another super bowl baby!
May 13th, 2021 at 8:13 pm
my friends: tom is the real deal. as a lifelong PATS fan, he made every fall Sunday must watch TV. how long can he play? uncharted territory, let’s just enjoy. GO BUCS!
May 13th, 2021 at 8:19 pm
Add me to the list of former Brady hater turned fan. You can’t help but love him. Even Ndog had to stop posting about him. There is just nothing to complain about. Dude is on point in every way including what is said by his teammates. It seems far and few between to hear a teammate of Brady’s say anything negative about the man. He never stops working on his craft and he’s become one of the most important “coaches” on this team.
May 13th, 2021 at 10:03 pm
Always hated Bellicheck more than Brady.
May 13th, 2021 at 11:11 pm
I wanna cry. Awesome story. We are so lucky to have this dude.
May 13th, 2021 at 11:37 pm
I will take the bait on trask vs mills or mond. The bet that trask w brady is better than mond w brady or mills w brady might just come down to size. Trask being bigger. Definitely no negatives on trask, he will work hard and handle difficulty well.
Brady is so special you filter decisions around him.
May 13th, 2021 at 11:40 pm
weeks 3 thru 6 seem like the most difficult on the schedule…
that’s a tough 4 week stint due to heavy travel, and then finning out on short rest at philly on the road…
tough 4 game stretch
May 14th, 2021 at 6:11 am
You mean for the QB position it isn’t about how strong your arm is, and how fast you run the 40? It’s more between the ears then being gifted physically. Always has been, always will be.
May 14th, 2021 at 12:19 pm
well said, cat.