Old School Boston Scribe Now A Tom Brady Believer After Bucs Loss
January 26th, 2022
Johnny Unitas-tough.
So let Joe get this straight: A Boston-based NFL reporter has come to realize Tom Brady is the best because of a loss?
That’s the conclusion Ron Borges came to after the Bucs lost in nuts-punching fashion in the division round Sunday night.
Most of the non-believers always argued Joe Montana over Brady. Joe used to be in that camp. Montana never threw a pick in four Super Bowls and had to go through a gauntlet each year to get to the Super Bowl: Tom Landry’s Cowboys, Joe Gibbs’ Redsk!ns, Bill Parcells’ Giants and Mike Ditka and the grizzly Bears’ defense.
Those are some of the greatest and most storied teams in NFL history and they always stood in the path of Montana and the 49ers. Brady and the Belicheats? Ha! They had to beat the Jets. smh
Of course, all of this changed for Joe when Brady came to town. Joe saw with his own eyes how Brady single-handedly turned around a moribund Bucs franchise. And then, he pulled off a Montana-like run of getting the Bucs past the slimy Saints, the Packers and then the Chiefs, all with quarterbacks who will have busts in Canton someday.
But for Borges, who is old enough to remember Johnny Unitas, he stubbornly held the position that Unitas was the best. Why? Because Unitas threw the ball like Brady but was tougher than Ray Lewis. Unitas played in an era when quarterbacks were teed off on and beaten to hell each week, and it was totally above board.
Sunday changed Borges’ mind.
For the first time, Borges claimed Brady got the hell beat out of him. And because the Bucs were so short-handed due to injuries, Brady, 44, fought his tail off to nearly complete his greatest comeback, slicing the Rams apart while bleeding from the face.
That sealed it for Borges, who covered every Brady game in New England.
[Brady] won over a Johnny Unitas devotee by showing he was more than a great passer in a passing era. He’s a hard-nosed old geezer who refuses to lose. He had, as those who played with him used to say about Unitas, merely run out of time.
Borges is the first guy Joe knows of that withheld knighting Brady because of Unitas. Most are/were Montana guys. Damn near every guy who remembers Unitas in his prime 60 years ago is either pushing up daisies or in a nursing home.
After watching Brady — as an NFL senior citizen — lead the Bucs to glory, Joe was sold.
January 26th, 2022 at 8:05 am
Bring Back Brady……or else we’ll have to Build Back Better…..unlike the Govt…we have a salary cap though.
January 26th, 2022 at 8:31 am
Good article, Joe. Now let’s get a WR3 Tom can trust–AJ Green?
January 26th, 2022 at 8:36 am
Bring back Godwin, and berrios from the jets.
Get a legitimate back out of the backfield, one that is know as a pass catcher out of the backfield.
And then back them up solidly. Trade OJ or get rid of him, shore up the line.
January 26th, 2022 at 8:41 am
Thanks BA & Bowles for ruining the Goats greatest comeback ever. At the blink of an eye Bowles closed the door on Bucs 2022 QB. Unbelievable the Bears want to still interview him. I can hear it now. Todd, explain to us what was going through your head when you made that final blitz call? Well, I figured Stafford would fold under the blitz and our young inexperienced safety could cover Kupp one on one. Todd, do you regret your decision? No, even Bruce agreed with me. I also wanted to eliminate outside distractions so I can focus more on my interviews. Thanks Todd, we’ll get back to you.
January 26th, 2022 at 8:42 am
Even Montana agreed that Brady was the GOAT.
I firmly believe that Brady will retire. It looks like Gronk is sending a signal, that he’s not going to commit unless Brady commits. And by the sound of it, he has doubts about Brady continuing.
He went down fighting and gunning his way back in what looked like a hopeless game. It isn’t about winning the Super Bowl, it’s about giving your 200% and never accepting defeat.
It’s been a helluva ride!
January 26th, 2022 at 10:13 am
I remember Unitas and the Colts coming the USF for a practice before the Bucs were established.
January 26th, 2022 at 11:16 am
If Brady comes back, Gronk likely will also. We’ve got to get Godwin and Jensen under contract. Fournette has shown he’s a more than capable 3-down RB. Then we just need to focus on pass rusher and CB in the draft.
January 26th, 2022 at 11:22 am
NFL is harder now with the salary cap and much improved sports medicine and training. And it’s easy to laud and extol a QB that threw the ball to Jerry Rice and Dwight Clark.
January 26th, 2022 at 1:33 pm
Older generations have the pic of YA Tittle kneeling on the field bleeding. And we have Tom Brady’s fat lip 😂
January 26th, 2022 at 1:49 pm
Good article from Joe, and the original article is also a good read, should check out both.
January 26th, 2022 at 10:24 pm
Borges is a long-time hater, despised by Patriots fans for many years. His opinion never mattered to a lot of Pats fans then, and not now.
January 27th, 2022 at 6:03 pm
BYE BYE BRADY……. GRONK…….. LETTING GO!