Was Tom Brady a 49ers fan growing up?
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady was born and raised in the Bay Area, which made it natural for him to become a fan of the San Francisco 49ers.
Monday night wasn’t the homecoming Tom Brady was hoping for. The San Francisco 49ers humiliated his Tampa Bay Buccaneers, in only the second meeting he’s ever had with the team that he rooted for as a child.
The quarterback has played in 23 NFL seasons, and in all that time, he has only played against the San Francisco once before, in 2016, when he brought the New England Patriots to victory with four touchdowns at Levi’s Stadium.
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He had missed a chance to play against his once-favorite team in 2008, when he was nursing a knee injury.
Bay-bred Brady
Brady was born and raised in San Mateo, which is part of the Bay Area and the San Francisco Peninsula. He was a regular attendee of 49ers games at Candlestick Park, and was famously present when quarterback Joe Montana threw ‘The Catch’ to wide receiver Dwight Clark in 1981. He was four years old at the time.
The seven-time Super Bowl winner idolized Montana and has referred to him as one of his inspirations. Former fullback Tom Rathman was also one of of Brady’s favorites. The current running backs coach of San Francisco was a neighbor of Brady’s best friend, so he was able to get acquainted with Rathman before the draft.
However, the 45-year-old’s feelings towards San Francisco eventually soured when they passed him over in the 2000 NFL draft, where he eventually became the 199th pick overall.