Tom Brady Delivers the Interview We Needed to Hear

 

 

CSNNE – Last week was dominated by a stat-based analysis that allegedly showed the decline of Tom Brady as a quarterback. Sam Monson, who wrote the piece for ESPN.com, was challenged on his findings and said that wins and losses are not an accurate measure of a quarterback’s individual play because it’s a team game. I asked Brady Monday at Gillette Stadium what the most important statistic is when it comes to evaluating a quarterback.“Other than wins and losses?… I think that people pay to watch the games on TV because there’s a scoreboard,” Brady began. “I mean, I think that’s what it’s all about. If there were no scoreboard, then people wouldn’t tune in and watch. There’s only one stat that matters… The guys that I’ve been around that find ways to motivate themselves, those are the best players,” he insisted. “They don’t have to wait for some Sunday in September to find out if they’re competitive. You find that out in March. You figure that out in February, at the end of February when no one else really is working. The competition of what’s inside of you and how that’s gonna really help your team and build your team to be more competitive… Winning games is the most important thing certainly for this organization and when you come here you learn that pretty quickly. Whatever matters to you as an individual it’s far distant from what the team goals are. And the team goal is one thing. To score more points than the other team.”

Herald – “The thing I’ve learned over the years is you’ve got to pay the price in advance,” Brady said. “You just can’t run on the field and expect things to be better without putting in the time and extra effort.” …That’s the responsibility he harnesses as the Patriots work toward their set standard of championship football…  “It’s not really for individual recognition. It’s for team success. That’s what you’re trying to establish this time of year, what kind of team you’re going to be, who is willing to put it all on the line when there’s no glory in this. There’s no glory in an OTA practice. There’s no glory in the weight room or out there on the conditioning field, but it will show up at some point. It’s a long season. At some point, the mental toughness, the discipline of the team always shows up. Those are the things that we’re trying to work on.”…Then, he turned and walked toward the locker room. “Back to practice,” Brady said.

Whoa.  Clean up in Aisle My Pants!  Is there anyone who gives good interview the way Tom Brady does?  I mean, this was a three tissue interview if ever I’ve heard one.  Just when I thought I was totally spent after those first comments about how all that matters is scoreboard, he comes right back with those other ones about toughness and discipline and paying the price to succeed and puts my Space Shuttle right back on the launch pad.  It’s amazing.  The man just always says exactly what you need to hear.  The Red Sox are stuck in the breakdown lane on the Road to Nowhere?  The Celtics and Bruins aren’t making any news at all.  Pretty soon there’s going to be no living with those insufferable soccer twats.  So along comes Brady and tells us precisely what we want him to say.   That he’s as obsessed as ever with one thing and one thing only: Winning.  That he’s getting up mornings in February and March to go work out when nobody is looking.  That he’s driving himself like a madman and his team to find the competitive edge that will make the difference next season.  Because that’s the Patriots Way.  All this speech needed was a Kenny Loggins song and it could’ve been the workout montage from an 80’s movie.  That’s how you get to have the highest winning percentage (.775) of all time.  That’s how you get to be the only QB in history with more than 100 wins over .500 (166-51, so +115 and counting) in a league where only 12 QBs have won 100 games, period.  That’s how the 199th draft picks wins as many Super Bowls as the entire Manning family tree combined.  You do it by not caring about the individual recognition.   Or what some anonymous, low level, numbers-crunching drone at ESPN can do with this stupid analytics.  You put it all on the line when there’s no glory in it.  At OTA, the weight room and the conditioning field.  Because scoreboard is the only stat that matters.  Although it’s been said, many times, many ways: God help me, I love this guy.  Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be consulting with my doctor about this erection that’s lasted more than four hours.  It’s only June and I’ve got a bad case of Patriots Priapism.  @JerryThornton1