Brady can break QB passing yards record against Pats on Sunday
Tampa Bay Bucs quarterback Tom Brady visits the place he called home for 20 years, with a chance break the all time yardage record in New England on Sunday.
Tom Brady’s legacy has already been cemented as the greatest quarterback of all time, if you look at his Super Bowl pedigree. For those who find stats to be the most important barometer for the “GOAT”, the 44 years old continues to break records. The next record in his sights, Drew Brees’ the all-time passing yardage record.
Brady on track to break the record in Foxborough
He sits just 68 yards behind Drew Brees’ 80,358 career yards coming into Sunday’s game against, who else but Brady’s former team , the New England Patriots.
How fitting is it that Brady has a chance to break the record at a place he called home for two decades? The seven time Super Bowl champion has a flare for the drama, and what better place to break the all time record for yardage than in the house he helped build?
Brady’s long time rival and good friend Drew Brees will be working the game as an analyst during the the pregame, halftime shows for NBC. The former New Orleans quarterback spoke Tuesday, saying “I’m a firm believer that records are meant to be broken,"
Brees broke the record three years ago
Brees has held the record since 2018, when he overtook Peyton Manning’s all time record for passing yards. The current NBC analyst broke the record in spectacular fashion, tossing a 62-yard bomb to Tre’Quan Smith on a Monday Night in the Super Dome.
The former Saint said he’d like Brady to break his record in similar fashion, "I'd be all for Brady just launching the first play of the game, just go ahead and get it out of the way… He needs, what? Sixty-eight yards? Let's have New England kick it in the end zone, start at the 25 and have him launch one to Mike Evans and let's just be done with it.”
The question of Brady breaking the record is not a matter of if, but when. In his first three games of the season he is averaging 362 yards per game.
Just a matter of time
Brees commended his former rival’s physical and mental capacity to keep playing at the highest level for over 20 years, "There's no doubt I think that's gonna get knocked down pretty quick. I can't think of a guy who has invested more into his career and his preparation and kind of what he's meant for the game. It's definitely a special record because it speaks to the longevity that he's been able to experience and the level that he's been able to play at."
When Brees broke the record in his home stadium three years ago the game stopped and there was a mini ceremony for Brees during the game as his wife and children came on to the field to celebrate the historic moment.
What awaits Brady in Gillette Stadium?
The Bucs may be playing on the road this week, but Brady is playing at home. The Patriots will surely have something special prepared for the quarterback that won them six Super Bowls since the turn of the millennium.
Brees said Brady will have a tough time appreciating the moment while in the midst of battle, "You're so locked into the game. You really can't allow yourself to go there too much," Brees said.
"It's really something that you try to get out of the way emotionally prior to the game. I'll be honest with you. ... I know the way I felt, leading up to games like this, whether it was playing an old team or chasing a record, I would visualize being in that moment, I would visualize breaking the record, I would visualize everything that was gonna happen.”