10 Reasons Why Tom Brady Is the GOAT

Tom Brady just won his seventh Super Bowl as the starting quarterback. Over the past 20 seasons, Brady has dominated the AFC.

In fact, he dominated to the tune of multiple past appearances in the Super Bowl. But the 2020 season brought on some substantial changes for Brady.

He left the Patriots and Belichick for Bruce Arians and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Now at 43 years of age, Brady has once again showed us why he is the best Super Bowl quarterback of all time.

Only this time, he represented the NFC. Here are 10 reasons Tom Brady is the GOAT.

10 – He’s a Team First Player

One of the impressive aspects to me is Brady’s willingness to curb his ego and put the team first. He has demonstrated time and again that he will put the ability to win above his financial ambitions.

Brady served as the face of the franchise for two decades in Foxborough. He never allowed arrogance to overshadow the team’s accomplishments.

He builds his teammates up when they win and places the responsibility squarely on his shoulders when they lose.

Brady has taken significantly less money off the field than he deserved in order to make sure the key pieces were in place to make another Super Bowl push.

Few players in NFL history have sacrificed their finances for the greater good. Brady is an excellent teammate both on and off the field.

9 – He’s Made More Out of Less

Brady has won more Super Bowls than any quarterback in the history of the NFL. He’s done it with less talent on paper than many.

That’s because Tom Brady makes everyone around him better. He’s not making Wes Welker catch the ball.

However, Welker knows that he has to be where he’s supposed to be, and if he is, the ball will be there immediately. There’s no room for fractions or half effort in Brady’s offense.

This is probably why a fledgling slot receiver like Welker quickly became an All-Pro wide receiver. When Brady gets to throw to a tremendous wide receiver, you get the record season for TD receptions.

This was the season Randy Moss had in 2007, a year after Moss’ had the worst season of his career in Oakland. Many called Moss an afterthought, yet Brady had different plans.

8 – He Has Defied Age

Seriously, the guy has hardly aged. It’s clear that he’s lost a little bit of mobility, and the cannon is beginning to fade, but he’s still the best even at 43.

To put that in context, Patrick Mahomes, who faced Brady in Super Bowl LV, was only four years old when the Patriots drafted Brady in the 2000 NFL Draft.

Brady hasn’t taken shortcuts like discovering the fountain of youth. He’s stayed relevant through hard work and discipline. Brady has a daily regimen that he sticks to 365 days a year. He doesn’t gain 20 pounds in the offseason or rush back into shape before the team reports for training camp.

This may very well be Brady’s final season. Still, it wouldn’t surprise anybody if he were around for another five years.

7 – Nobody Has Been as Clutch

Tom Brady, in a word, is “clutch.” There’s not a person on the planet you’d rather have the ball than Tom Brady when the game is on the line.

This is especially true in massive games. Super Bowl XXXVI is a prime example of his cold-blooded nature.

Brady marched down the field in a tied game with under two minutes on the clock and got the Patriots within field goal range.

From that moment on, Brady has never let his teammates down. I believe it’s this same determination that carried the Buccaneers into the Super Bowl this season.

Brady clearly does not falter in the face of overwhelming pressure, and by this point, how much stress can he truly feel moving forward? He’s pretty much done it all.

6 – All Expectations Have Been Vastly Exceeded

To say that Brady has exceeded every expectation would be an understatement. Even if Brady had been selected first overall, anybody would clearly understand what a once-in-a-lifetime talent Brady is.

Well, the Pats took Brady 199th overall. If I listed the 198 players that were taken ahead of him, you’d probably recognize fewer than five. Brian Urlacher is the most notable selection outside of Brady.

He’s a player that very well could have gone undrafted but turned out to be the best. Even the talking heads at Disney must be jealous of that storyline!

5 – He’s at His Best in the Playoffs

The NFL Playoffs are the bar by which all NFL quarterbacks are measured. You cannot deny or argue the overwhelming success of Brady in the playoffs.

He rises to the occasion where so many others have merely folded to the pressure.

Joe Montana has long been considered the best of all-time with his four Super Bowl rings. Terry Bradshaw is another of the greats and one of only three QBs to have four rings. Tom Brady is now sitting with seven.

So, if Super Bowl wins are the measure of greatness, it’s not even a discussion about who the GOAT is anymore. Brady has not only continued to be a tremendous contender at the top of the NFL, but he’s also shown sustained success for going on 20 years.

4 – The Numbers Don’t Lie

Tom Brady has put himself near the top in every metric that makes an NFL quarterback elite.

He’s in the top five all-time in passing yards and touchdown passes. Brady has more playoff wins than anyone and has won 12 divisional titles, more than any other greats.

Brady also has the record for the longest winning streak and took the Patriots to an undefeated season in 2007. He has five Super Bowl MVP awards. That’s more MVPs than Montana or Bradshaw have Super Bowls.

Brady isn’t just the best to ever do it; he’s closed the door on the conversation. I hated on Brady and the New England Patriots for years, but you know what? I was utterly wrong. Brady is fantastic, and I wish I’d spent more time appreciating the greatness as it was happening.

3 – He Won Against the All-Time Greats

It’s not as if Brady was playing against weak competition. Many of the all-time passing leaders went head-to-head with Brady and fell short.

Brady faced several of the best, but his rivalry with Peyton Manning stood out the most. Brady and Manning faced off 15 times in the NFL playoffs.

Even Manning’s two Super Bowls and five MVPs seem weak in comparison to what Brady has accomplished. Manning is easily a first-ballot Hall of Fame quarterback.

Yet, Brady has surpassed the legend in nearly every way imaginable—much like he has every other player to ever stand under center.

2 – No QB Has Appeared in as Many Super Bowls

Tom Brady gets his team to the Super Bowl. That’s what he does; he wins.

Brady has appeared in 10 Super Bowls total throughout his career. The next closest quarterback is John Elway with 5.

Elway went 2-3, while Brady is 7-3.

There’s no disputing that hitting double digits in Super Bowl appearances is something truly remarkable.

Brady has appeared in more Super Bowls than two of my childhood favorites, Elway and Montana combined. And he has won more Super Bowls than Roger Staubach, Peyton Manning, and Brett Favre combined. Of course, the list grows much larger if we add quarterbacks that were elite but never won the big game.

1 – The Seven Lombardi Trophies

I keep going back to the seven rings because, at the end of the day, it’s all that matters. QB ratings, passing yards, and TDs aren’t worth a lick of salt if you aren’t winning.

If you think anything but Super Bowls matter, ask Jerry Jones. Jones wants another Super Bowl win for his beloved Dallas Cowboys more than anything.

Suppose you sat down and talked to any of the elite quarterbacks that never won a Super Bowl. What would they wish for above all else?

That’s precisely my point. Dan Marino smashed passing records during a career with the Miami Dolphins. Still, he could never lead his team to a Lombardi Trophy.

While there’s no disputing Marino was an excellent passer, he’s not even in the conversation of the best quarterbacks of all-time.

He was at one point, then all of Brady’s contemporaries came along.

Conclusion

Love him or hate him, Tom Brady is the best to ever do it in the NFL and could be the best to ever do it in all of sports. My recommendation is to sit back and enjoy the show.

Brady and Tampa Bay had their work cut out for them against the Chiefs in Super Bowl LV. But just as Brady has done in many years prior, the star quarterback brought his team out on top.