Here Are All The Records Tom Brady Held At His Retirement
Tom Brady is without a doubt one of the greatest — if not the greatest — quarterbacks of all time. In a career that lasted over two decades, Brady remained a dominant force through it all. His longevity and consistency are nearly unrivaled anywhere in professional sports.
In his illustrious career with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Brady has collected so many accolades that it almost makes you wonder how by some sort of fluke or clerical error he wasn't named Defensive Player of the Year at some point. Upon the announcement of his retirement on February 1, 2022, Tampa Bay Buccaneers released an article that listed all of these achievements and some of them are completely mind-boggling, and perhaps even more mind-boggling that these were all amassed who wasn't selected until the sixth round of the NFL draft. The sixth round!
All football fans and even those who admit to only watching the Super Bowl for the commercials are well aware of Brady's dominance, but when seeing it all written out it's staggering.
Brady certainly knew where the endzone was
The former Michigan Wolverine is responsible for more passing touchdowns than any other player in NFL history with a jaw-dropping 624. The next player on the list is Drew Brees who racked up 571 during his career with the San Diego Chargers and New Orleans Saints, according to ESPN. Brady also holds the record for the most three-touchdown games with 101, as well as the most four-touchdown games with 39.
Of course, Tom Brady can't do everything himself and needed someone to catch those touchdown passes. His favorite target, per The Providence Journal, was tight end Rob Gronkowski who caught a whopping 90 Brady touchdown passes when the two played together in both New England and Tampa. Next on the list with 39 Brady-air-mailed trips to the endzone is Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss. Wide receiver Julian Edelman found the endzone 36 times after snagging a Tom Brady pass.
Tom Brady threw the ball ... a lot
Tom Brady wasn't necessarily known for his quick feet (especially in the later years of his career), which meant that he mostly relied on his arm. And why shouldn't he? It certainly seemed to work well for him and any team he played for.
Brady is the all-time leader in most pass attempts with 11,317, per the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which would be more than enough throws to make a lesser man's arm fall off. But an attempt isn't good for much unless it winds up as a completed pass. Fortunately for him, Brady holds that record too with 7,263. For the less math-inclined, that results in a completion percentage of 64.2%. These passes accumulated 84,520 passing yards, which just for fun, is a smidge over 48 miles. And, yes, that is an all-time record as well.
These monstrous figures helped Brady propel the teams fortunate enough to have him on the roster to 243 wins, the most by a quarterback in history.
Brady's late-game heroics
There's often talk in sports circles about a mythical clutch gene. Something ingrained in certain players that allows them to perform at their best under immense pressure and when the game is on the line. Of course, there isn't an actual genetic predisposition that makes some athletes better in the latter stages of games, but some of Tom Brady's records are enough to make most people give it a second thought.
Brady's penchant for comebacks and stomping on the hearts of opposing fanbases the world over is legendary. He's second only to Hall of Famer Peyton Manning in total game-winning drives, with 53 to his name. Manning has 54. When it comes to fourth-quarter comebacks, Brady trails Manning, but once again only by one, with 42 to Manning's 43.
However, in the post-season, Brady has the most game-winning drives with 14 and the most fourth-quarter comebacks with 9, per Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Brady's Post-Season Prowess
It's in the post-season where the legend of Tom Brady really grew. He certainly helped that he appeared in the post-season a lot, making it past the regular season 19 times, per Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
In those 19 trips to the playoffs, Brady started a record 47 post-season games, a crazy number considering the maximum number of playoff games a team could play per season is four and that's only if the team makes it all the way to Super Bowl.
However, Brady made it to the Super Bowl a lot. He made 10 appearances over the course of his career and took home 7 victories. Both of those figures are records. Those 7 Super Bowl rings are more than any NFL franchise, according to Sky Sports.
In the post-season, Brady was good for 1,165 completions which totaled 13,049 yards. He threw 86 post-season touchdowns. Every single one of those statistics is an NFL record.
Wait. Tom Brady has even more records?
Yes, he does. Tom Brady started 316 games in his career which — as you may have guessed — is yet another record he has on his CV. Hall of Famer Brett Favre is next on that list with 298 starts to his name.
He's been named to the Pro Bowl more than any other player in history, earning the distinction 15 times. However, he hasn't played in that many Pro Bowls, frequently having to excuse himself from the NFL's all-star game to prepare for one of his many Super Bowl appearances. Brady also has the most Super Bowl MVP awards with 5, per Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Brady will no doubt find himself enshrined at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio thanks to these achievements and seemingly countless records. It could even be argued that he put together such a successful career with dominance the likes of which professional football — and professional sports — has never seen, he may need more than just his own plaque in Canton, he may need an entire wing.