Tom Brady would love to be called a great teammate, which he has time and time again throughout his career. The other moniker, that’s been attached to him in recent seasons, he’s less than thrilled about.
More and more sports fans and pundits are ready to declare the New England Patriots quarterback the greatest of all time, even if it makes Brady uncomfortable.
“I don’t really like it, truthfully. I am (uncomfortable) because I don’t see myself in that way,” Brady told Patriots radio broadcaster Scott Zolak on “Patriots All-Access” during a sitdown interview. “I play for the enjoyment of the game. I play for the camaraderie with my teammates and I play to win. I don’t play to be called a certain thing or compared to this guy.
“I had heroes when I grew up; there’s a lot of great quarterbacks when I grew up and now. The fact that I’m still playing, I love being that. I don’t need people to tell me that, ‘Man, you’re such and such’ or ‘You’re better than this,’ like, there’s a lot of great players, and that’s how I see a lot of other players.”
More than anything else, though, Brady just feels thankful to have spent so much time with one organization, an organization that has allowed him to become the absolute best version of himself as a football player.
“There’s a lot of things that guys can do that I can’t do — and there’s some things I can do that other guys can’t do, too,” he continued. “That’s part of my skill set, and there’s so many different things involved with being a great player. I think the greatest asset I have is a great organization: great ownership, great coaches and great teammates I’ve had since I came into the league.”
The results — five Super Bowl titles — certainly are hard to argue.