Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - New England Patriots Legend Tom Brady Hall of Fame Induction: Bill Belichick, Robert Kraft and More

Episode Date: June 14, 2024

New England Patriots legend Tom Brady was honored with a first-of-its-kind ceremony inside Gillette Stadium on Wednesday — the first induction in team history to waive the customary four-year waiting period. Joining host Mike D’Abate is Thomas ‘Murph’ Murphy to discuss Brady’s induction ceremony, his relationship with his teammates and former coach Bill Belichick and their favorite Brady memories. #nfl #patriots #tombrady Find and follow Locked On Patriots on your favorite podcast platforms:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1c5ZxFm...Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-...And follow host Mike D’Abate on X, where he’ll be sharing the latest news about the New England Patriots and talking with fans — @mdabateNFLSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!eBay MotorsFor parts that fit, head to eBay Motors and look for the green check. Stay in the game with eBay Guaranteed Fit at eBayMotors.com. Let’s ride. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms Apply.FanDuelFanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook. Right now, NEW customers get TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS in BONUS BETS with any winning FIVE DOLLAR BET. That’s TWO HUNDRED BUCKS you can use to bet everything from the Finals MVP to who's going to hit one out of the park! Visit FANDUEL.COM/LOCKEDON and add a big win to your summer bucket list!FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN)

In the words of Jon Bon Jovi and Jennifer Nettles, who says you can't go home? Tom Brady did, and it was a night fit for the GOAT. Stick around, you're about to be locked in to the Locked On Patriots podcast. You are Locked On Patriots, your daily New England Patriots podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your team every day. Hello to all of you, Foxborough faithful. And thank you once again for making Locked On Patriots a daily part of your New England Patriots coverage.

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And Pats fans, it was a night to remember in Foxborough on Wednesday. Patriots legend Tom Brady is now a New England Patriots Hall of Famer, as if there was ever any doubt that that was going to happen. But all kidding aside, the Patriots legend honored with a first-of-its-kind ceremony inside Gillette Stadium on Wednesday evening. It was the first induction ceremony that the Patriots have awaited, the customary four-year waiting period. The date of June 12th obviously representing the six rings that Brady won

when he was in New England. And, of course, the 12th being his iconic number 12 jersey, which as you can see is hanging over my shoulder right over here for one day only to honor the accomplishments of the greatest to ever wear a Patriots uniform. You could feel the energy rise in Gillette Stadium with each passing minute, and you can feel the energy rising today because we're doing a special thursday mailbag

episode in honor of tb12 and if it's a mailbag episode if we're talking tom brady who else could provide the wisdom the counsel that we need here on this program today then my good friend the legend himself thomas murphy thank you for coming to me in friendship today from one goat to another don murphy what a night you know from from Jay-Z coming out at the beginning to Bill Belichick's giant ovation. Well done, everyone in attendance. And, you know, what a great night. And it was.

It was a fitting salute to the greatest of all time. Absolutely. Without any question. A fitting salute, a fitting tribute. And folks, we're going to get into the Knights events and also interweave those with some of our favorite Brady memories and the Brady legacy that he now leaves in New England. And it's good to see Tom Brady come home.

And he said that last night, Murph. One of the first things that Brady said when he took the podium was Patriots Nation, it's good to be home. And in a lot of ways, I think that really encapsulated the entire theme of the night. It felt like a homecoming. It felt like a reunion, but it also had a reverence and a regal quality to it where you're honoring the greatest to ever do it in a Patriots uniform. For anyone that was fortunate enough to be in the arena last night, you feel it. You know exactly what I'm talking about. There was a sense of camaraderie. There was a sense of nostalgia, but there was also, I think, a sense of gratitude throughout the night for everything that Tom Brady has brought to this organization, to the fan base, and most importantly, to his coaches and teammates who were very candid about Brady's

impact and not even so much what he did on the field but the leadership abilities he showed in the locker room and on the practice field was really refreshing to hear that from a lot of the Patriots in attendance and of course Brady gets his red jacket that is now a part of his sartorial collection but we know that there is a gold jacket waiting for him in Canton. That's a foregone conclusion as well. But team owner Robert Kraft did deliver in two areas that Patriots fans have been waiting for. First of all, Murph, obviously, I alluded to it earlier, the number 12 hanging over my shoulder will now be retired in Patriots nation. Robert Kraft vowing that there is only one number 12

for the New England Patriots and that it will never be worn again. The second was the commissioning of a local sculptor to craft a 12-foot statue out of bronze of Tom Brady that will stand outside the Hall of Fame on the plaza and it will be unveiled at some point in 2024. So Brady gets his red jacket, a star-studded guest list to welcome him back to New England and essentially ingratiate him into Patriots

Immortality. And now we're seeing that he will be getting the statue. He will be getting his number 12 retired. So a lot of people are wondering this ceremony, did they do enough to honor the legacy of Tom Brady? And that's where we're going to start today in the mailbag because Tom from Storrs, Connecticut. No relation. In Murph's neck of the woods. And, you know, he's celebrating Danny Hurley hanging around for maybe banner number three for the Yukon Huskies. But he also wanted to know a little bit about Tom Brady, Murph.

And he says Tom Brady's induction ceremony into the Patriots Hall of Fame was it a tribute fit for the goat yes it was it was an electric night um hats off to uh to the Kraft family and the Patriots organization for doing it in this way and um and not making Tom wait not putting him on any ballot and keeping somebody else off because they limit how many people can go in. And, you know, it's just one a year. And we know which one it would have been that year. There's no doubt about it. And things are getting kind of crowded over there because there are a lot of guys worthy of the Hall.

But only one guy is worthy of his own night. Only one guy is worthy of a sold-out Fox Gillette Stadium. And everything that went along with it last night. The red carpet. It was brilliantly done and hats off. Like I said at the outset, I was sorry that I had to turn down the tickets that I was offered for this. But it couldn't be, I just couldn't accept them.

And it is, it'll be one of the great tragedies of my life that I wasn't able to be there sitting in this. I wasn't down, I wasn't offered a seat at the tables, folks. I was just out there in this, I would have just been out there in the stands, but it will. It'll be one of the great regrets of my life that I wasn't there. I can assure you, you were there in spirit, and there's no question about that. And I think Tom alluded to that as well when he spoke directly to the fans and said, I wish I had more time for

each and every one of you. Tom meant that. He got emotional when he said that. You could see the gratitude. You could see the appreciation that he has for the fans that gave their time, gave their money to come watch him play, to stand out in the rain, in the snow, in terrible elements, go to the airports and greet these players when they came back or stand at Gillette Stadium, even in defeat. These are things that never were lost on Tom Brady, never were lost on anybody in that organization, from Robert Kraft to Bill Belichick to all of the players that put on the uniform

during those dynasty era years, that two plus decades of dynastic football that were played here in New England. Tom Brady was the constant, and that to me was a central theme. All the players that got up, all the coaches that spoke anybody that spoke about tom brady said that he is the only one that could bring all of these people together fans coaches um rivals uh watching peyton manning come out as a bitter rival of tom's right and knowing that there was a friendship behind the scenes that people didn't get a chance to see when these guys were playing and it did manifest itself after they retired reminded me a lot of magic johnson and larry bird in their hate yeah you look at these guys and the respect that they had for one

another and you talk about and you hear peyton talk about he would watch what tom did and say okay i have to go out and i have to do that here tom brady say that he held peyton manning as the gold standard of quarterbacks and that's what he aspired to do. I've heard Larry say this several times. I'm into magic yet last night. Well, I got to go out and I got to get that. He's shooting 50 free throws. I'm going to go out and shoot a hundred. This is the way that guys like that push each other. And to see a rival, someone that you competed against, not only give you a tribute, but also make it their point to be there in person, to shake your hand, give you a hug and congratulate you, says all you need to know about the level of respect for these two players. That was a great moment last night.

The respect shown from Hall of Famers, all pros, you know, the people that he went up against. Take a look, people. Take a look when somebody brings up, you know, the conversation that other people might be the GOAT, the greatest of all. Look at the people that Tom Brady laid to waste during his tenure in the NFL. The Hall of Famers that he just brushed aside, that pushed him along, but that he just spent an entire 20 years beating, including the one that everybody is trying to usurp his throne with. From Manning to Roethlisberger, these are all Hall of Fame caliber quarterbacks that Tom just brushed aside and said, no, you're in my way. I want another. I want the next one. And it's coming at your expense. And it was. The list is long and distinguished, just like the list of guests last night at Gillette.

Very well said. Absolutely. And I love the fact that you mentioned about Brady being the constant throughout all those years. You mentioned Manning, you mentioned Roethlisberger, Mahomes. Brady has invited these guys to conference championships, to Superbowl several times, but Brady is the only constant among those names. You look at that 20 years and Brady's name is always there, depending on your point of view as the protagonist or the antagonist. We all know we revere him up here in New England, but vilified elsewhere in the country because of the success that he had. But Brady was the only constant and he was the constant that kept everything together

last night in Foxborough. One thing I did want to touch on a little bit more because you've been very vocal in this. The number 12 being retired, I think everybody realized that was a foregone conclusion. I don't think anyone in his right mind would want to come and wear number 12 knowing that Tom Brady wore that here in New England. And to their credit, I don't think the crafts or anybody related to the Patriots organization would even entertain that idea. But the 12-foot bronze statue outside the hall, I know I'm looking forward to its unveiling. I know you will be as well. How special of a moment is that?

And what are your thoughts on that honor for Tom Brady? Because it's the first of its kind. No one else in Patriots Nation has a statue. No, there are no official retired numbers except for 12 now. There are no statues that surround Gillette Stadium, unlike other venues. You go to Fenway and there are statues there. You go to the Boston Garden and there are statues outside of there. Brady needed to be first. I don't know if he's going to be last. And I'm sure that we won't see another one for quite some time. I think there are a lot of guys during the Brady era that would deserve a bit of bronze outside the Hall of Fame.

But no, it is fitting. A 12-foot statue. The only thing, it's not big enough. It's not. Okay, it should be should be 1200 feet. It should span. It should span a route one from one leg on one side to one leg on the other, the Colossus of Brady. That's what, that's what needs to happen. I've been saying it for years and, and that's, you know, that's what needs to happen. But last night was beautiful. Um, the pain of 2020 is, is, uh, is being covered over.

It is, it is, uh, it is being lessened, uh, as we get into, you know, it, that goes further back into history. Um, it's only been four years, but you know, it really, it was crushing when Tom left here. It was, it was crushing. And I don't know if he would have won another title here, but I still would have rather seen him stay in a Patriots uniform for his entire career than go get that next ring. I have to think that, you know, hopefully it would have happened and things would have shook out better, but it didn't. But as he came back, when he was re-embraced by this community by all the

people that were there last night when he said that he was home you know that that made me feel good and and part of my icy heart melted away you know maybe dorothy had it right maybe there is no place like home and for tom brady it felt like it last night. And again, closing this segment in the words of Robert Kraft saying, quote, to perpetuate the legendary legacy of this once in a lifetime player, a bronze statue will stand 12 feet tall and be unveiled during the 2024 season. It will stand alone in the plaza outside the Hall of Fame to symbolize his position, not only as the greatest in franchise history, but the greatest in all of NFL history.

And that was another theme throughout the night that you heard several players, guys like Randy Moss, Drew Bledsoe, guys that know talent. They know what it's like to play with the best, to beat the best, to be the best in their game at a given moment. And for them to give those accolades to Tom Brady really were magical moments, Murph. And I think those will live in the hearts

of anyone who was there, who saw it, or who just had an opportunity to observe it on social media, or anyone that's seen a Brady game or experienced a Brady moment as a Patriots fan. Everyone had a part and a hand in what happened last night. Tom, to answer your question, yes, we do believe that it was a night fit for a goat. Other than the fact that I do agree with Murph, that 1,200-foot statue, the Colossus of Brady

overlooking the stadium, you want that stone-cold competitive stare from Tom Brady looking right into Gillette Stadium. You want every player that comes in there, every opposing player to look at that and to feel it all have passed underneath it. You know, exactly right. Exactly. Just,

you want that imposing presence over the top to eclipse the sun, the clips, the moon, whatever you want to say. No, all kidding aside. I really do believe that it was a night fit for a goat and he deserved every bit of it.

And you know, before we move on from Tom, gokies absolutely tom yes go huskies and that's coming from a friar so i was glad to see danny hurley hang around uh the boston celtics are on the verge of banner 18 it's great times here in boston and the patriots are still selling out gillette stadium tom brady is still selling out gillette stadium and the patriots weren't selling out Gillette Stadium. Tom Brady is still selling out Gillette Stadium. And the Patriots weren't even playing a game last night. What a sports town. We are so blessed to live in this region, to have this fan base all the way around.

It is the greatest. And I hope everybody out there saw that. All the players in the NFL saw the kind of support you get here in New England. You know, I'm not saying that Chris Hogan would have sold out Gillette Stadium, but people would have shown up to see him. Absolutely. No, it's true. And it really is. It's a one-of-a-kind camaraderie that you build here in New England

that is unlike anything else. And that's not to say there are not great fan bases elsewhere in the NFL. Royal fans and great fans, there are. There are a great number of great fan bases out there, but it's unique. It's special. The Boston Celtics hashtag right now, Murph is different here.

It is different when it comes to the green team in new England. It's different when it comes to every team here in new England. And that was a great message last night. And I think it was a great example of it in what went on in Gillette stadium. And what a night for the goat. last night and I think it was a great example of it in what went on in Gillette Stadium and what a night for the GOAT there are a lot of GOATs out there on the the dais in Foxborough on Wednesday night Robert Kraft greatest owner of all time Matthew Slater arguably the greatest

special teamer of all time I don't think Murph and I are arguing on the point but some may we believe that is the case obviously the guest of, the greatest to ever do it in the NFL. But another goat got his comeuppance last night, Murph. And I mean that in a positive way. He got the accolades he so richly deserves. And we're going to talk about whether the debate, no pun intended, between who is the greatest Patriot of all time has been resolved. Murph and I are going to give our opinion on that subject and much more when this episode

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Patriots fans, thank you once again for joining us here today on Locked on Patriots. It is a special Thursday mailbag episode. It is a tribute to Tom Brady, who is now the 35th member of the Patriots Hall of Fame, inducted in a star-studded, amazing three-hour ceremony at Gillette Stadium on Wednesday night. And Murph, we're going to continue our mailbag examination of Tom Brady's induction ceremony and the legacy he leaves here in New England. But before we do so, I just have a question for all of our everydayers out there. Are you tired of having to turn down the volume with all that shouting going on

when all you want is your daily sports fix? I know I'm tired of it. Murph's tired of it. We're all tired of it. Well, the good news is you can make the switch today to Locked On Sports Today, a free 24-7 streaming channel programmed for you every day to bring you the biggest stories without all the screaming. What more can you ask for?

It's great, folks. You're going to love it. Locked On Sports Today brings you can't miss analysis from the bevy of experts that we have here on the Locked On Podcast Network. Also bring you opinions and news. It's all streaming 24-7 on YouTube or the free Amazon fire TV channels app locked on sports. Today is a proud part of the locked on podcast network, your team every day.

And Murph today, we're opening up the mailbag and allowing our everydayers to ask their favorite Tom Brady questions in honor of last night's honoring ceremony, which inducted Tom as the 35th member of the Patriots hall of fame. And we talked about the sense of gratitude in the air in Foxborough last night when it came to Tom, when it came to the fan base and those that have played with him. There was a great sense of gratitude from the fan base as well, not only on Tom Brady's behalf, but also on behalf of the several Patriots players that took to the dais to

honor him last night. Guys we haven't seen get their just due when it comes to their accomplishments on the field. Maybe their ending was a little bit too abrupt for them to properly be thanked by the Gillette Stadium faithful. Obviously, Julian Edelman, Rob Gronkowski, they've had their chances to be honored here in New England. They got standing ovations well-deserved. One of the more touching moments, Randy Moss moved to tears by the gratitude showed to him by New England. It really, I think, caught him off guard. I really do believe that those tears were hugged.

He did not expect that. He did not expect that at all. And it was great to see it. He deserved every bit of that. In my opinion that could have gone on for the entire night and i would have been satisfied um and i think tom would have too tom got to his feet to applaud his good buddy but the longest sustained applause of the evening save for the guest of honor folks right i'm not talking about tom brady here came at the

introduction of former coach bill belichick and of course we all know Bill parted ways with the organization back in January after 24 years at the helm unsurprisingly Bill was visibly moved he was you could see it he was on the verge of tears uh Bill is not an emotional man I think that meant the world to him um greater than two minutes standing ovation and his kids felt like longer than those kids were there on the sidelines too they were there and they it really it it reached into them and it it it pulled something out and sorry to interrupt you but yeah i went no that later i got a little misty too because it it is well deserved yeah and And there have been a lot of loud voices around here over the past few years that have not been too kind to the greatest coach of all time. Yeah, absolutely. And there was a ton of mutual respect shown between Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. And for anyone thinking that

this relationship was still dripping with acrimony or wanted to find some way to cheapen what these two have done for each other and how they feel about each other just watch the day as last night go back and take a look at the footage you'll find plenty of it on social media bill belichick's words for tom brady i thought were extremely eloquent concluding with thank you for all that you've done for us all that you've done for me thank you for the example and the model you've been for all of us on a daily basis for 20 years you're unbelievable and that's Bill Belichick speaking of Tom Brady Tom wasn't to be outdone he came right back heartfelt as well saying to coach Belichick thank you for pushing me to be the best I could be it wasn't me it wasn't't you. It was us.

And then he says, let me make this crystal clear. There is no other coach in the entire world I would want to play for than Bill Belichick. These two accomplished so much together. It was a magical pairing. And it leads us to the question here for the mailbag today and who else, but Ted in Chicopee, Mass could ask

maybe the most poignant question to be asking today is, did Tom Brady end the Brady-Belichick debate for good by saying it was us? Now, unfortunately, no, because camps are divided. And in this day and age, people don't want to move. They don't want to just come to a consensus and agree to disagree or any of that. What Tom said, I have felt for a very long time. I don't think either of these men would have been great without the other one, without the example that each one set for the other. It was the perfect marriage for a very long time it ended badly because all relationships end badly otherwise they wouldn't end um and right now um that

relationship is is maybe uh mended quite a bit you know now that they've stepped back but but like i said i've always thought it was the both of them. I always thought that Brady would not be there without Belichick. Belichick would not have had the success that he had with any other quarterback. And neither of them would own as many rings that they have on their hands right now. Hands, that's plural, hands. Without the other. I still believe Tom Brady would have won three, maybe even four titles somewhere else if he had stayed somewhere, if he had gone somewhere else.

I never thought that, I remember during the Orange Bowl when he beat Alabama, I said that this kid is going to be something special. I said it that day. This kid is special. He has something. And I was thrilled when he came to New England. I kept waiting for somebody to take Tom Brady because I've been a huge Michigan fan for a long ass time.

Being an Irishman in the Northeast, you kind of get Notre Dame shoved down your throat. I kind of went to the left. I was, you know, being that brat who just wouldn't go along with the pack, with the rest of the Murphy family. And so, no, I was happy. I was thrilled when Tommy came here, but they would not

have been who they are without the other one. And I hope that people take what Tom had to say last night to heart and realize that, yes, this was a collaboration. This was probably the greatest marriage in NFL history between a coach and a player. Yeah. And I'm so glad that you said that because unfortunately it probably won't end the debate. They will still continue. It's the nature of our business. Even if the fans want to put it to rest, there are still members of the media that will go

out there and we'll tell you, well, it was really more Brady than it was Bill, or it was more Bill than it was Tom. There was so much respect that you could see with Bill Belichick talking about Tom Brady, with Brady then going back and talking about Belichick. Belichick sharing moments that we didn't know about with Brady. He shared a moment last night about the two of them playing in a celebrity golf tournament in a pro-am at Pebble Beach. And Tom hitting a shot that kind of went over onto the ledge a little bit beyond where the fairway was and any normal competitor would have probably just taken a drop and they

would have gone to the drop zone hit the shot and not really cared about it but Tom Brady's competitive nature made him go out onto the ledge and take the shot and Bill Belichick praying with every bit of himself that his quarterback did not injure himself. And I could actually see our season hanging in the balance, but that was Tom. That was the competition. He says, and even I couldn't get in a way of that competitive nature of Tom Brady discussing that the twice a week that they used to meet in his office and discuss football said that those were some of the favorite moments that he'll always have. And some of the most endearing moments that he'll always have and some

of the most endearing moments that he's ever had in pro football and just being there and seeing how great of a student Tom was how prepared Tom was when he came into these meetings and knowing that Bill Belichick would prepare and go above and beyond even what his limits were to make sure that he was ready to talk football with Tom shows the level of respect that a coach has for a player. You very seldom hear a coach admit that you very seldom see a coach do that. Belichick did both last night. So for anyone saying that Belichick's ego got in the way, folks definitely take a look at what you've got there.

And it was all revered because Brady deserved every single bit of that. Everything he did on the field helped Bill Belichick be a better coach, there and it was all revered because Brady deserved every single bit of that. Everything he did on the field helped Bill Belichick be a better coach, be a more revered coach. And I think you saw such a mutual respect between the two last night that in my opinion, it should put the debate to rest, but I agree with you. It probably won't for the sake of sports media conversations, bar conversations, things of that nature. But just remember folks, anytime you wonder about whether it's us, whether it's them, this player coach tandem, in my humble opinion, the most successful of its kind in professional sports, 285 regular season games, 41 post-season contests, a record setting nine Superbowl

appearances, 219 combined victories between Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, a record-setting nine Super Bowl appearances, 219 combined victories between Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, the most by any head coach quarterback duo in the history of the NFL. Right. That's special. That is special. And you saw it honored last night. And I was glad Bill got his accolades because the fans really didn't get a chance to adequately

say goodbye to him and show him all of the appreciation they have for everything he did here. But it was great to see it on the national stage honoring the greatest of all time. I could not have been happier with that moment. So many others that were in attendance last night that were a huge part, a great part of that. I wrote an article years ago that Tom Brady hasn't had one Hall of Fame career. He's had two. I wrote that article before other people said it on TV folks. And, um, and everybody that was there at the beginning, everybody that was there at the end and everybody was there in the middle had a part in this. It

wasn't just two men going out there. There was an entire team full of people that were, for lack of a better word, laser focused on one goal every single year. Every football player in every camp that's in there for mandatory minis right now across have that same goal, but only these guys achieved it six times together. Tom said it it last night he pointed the six banners that were hanging above him and he said you don't hang these banners individually you do it as a team right that was what these guys all bought into and tom brady was the reason why folks they watched him on the field they knew everything he did made it better for the team it kind of got us feeling nostalgic too and in just a moment at the request of one of our all-time great everydayers,

we are going to answer the question, what is our favorite Tom Brady memory? You're really intuitive. You could figure out where Murph and I might be headed, but we are headed in different directions. We'll explain why in just a moment when this episode of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues, a proud part of the Locked On Patriots podcast continues, a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team, every day. Pass fans, thank you once again for joining us here today on Thursday Mailbag Tom Brady Tribute Day

here on Locked On Patriots in honor of now the 35th inductee into the Patriots Hall of Fame Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. Murph, we have been talking about Tom all day. We love it. It is a Tom Tribute episode and folks, in just a moment,

Murph and I are going to get personal when it comes to our memories of Tom Brady, but first Pats fans, I want to remind you to keep a sharp eye on your YouTube and podcast feeds today, tomorrow, and over the weekend, because our new hub for all things New England sports, Lockdown Sports Boston, is ready to launch. And it's going to be your exclusive home for everything related to your beloved Boston Bruins, Boston Red Sox, your Banner 18-bound Boston Celtics, and of course, yours truly and your New England Patriots.

Show your New England fandom by locking in to Locked On Sports Boston, a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And Murph, last night's ceremony for Tom Brady was probably a moment of closure for a lot of Patriots fans that longed to see all of their heroes in one spot, be able to be in the same room, the same arena. Kind of be hard to fit all those people in one room, but in the same arena. 60,000 plus in attendance last night. Over 100 Patriots alumni, a star-studded guest list. A lot of video tributes sent in.

Matt Damon had a video tribute. I thought some of the Patriots rivals that Tom has faced throughout the years, guys like Ray Lewis, guys like Ed Reed, guys like Patrick Mahomes. Eli Manning got booed pretty heavily. But they all sent in video tributes to Tom. Tom's new colleagues now in the media, those that have had the opportunity to call his games, legends in this business like Al Michaels and Jim Nance and Joe Buck and Chris Berman, sportscasters that have called some very prominent and poignant Brady moments throughout the years,

had their chance to drop their words of wisdom and their favorite Brady memories. But you and I both know that it's always a personal situation when you talk about your favorite players, when you talk about players that have been so indelible in the history of the NFL, in the history of the franchise you grew up idolizing, that you're going to have your favorite moments, your favorite memories. And I thought we'd close up the mailbag today with a question from one of our all-time favorite every dayers, Sheila in Narragansett, Rhode Island. And Sheila wanted to know, and she directed this

question to the both of us, Murph, because she knew we'd be doing a mailbag tandem episode. What is your favorite Tom Brady memory? It's Super it's, it's Superbowl 51. It's the drive. Uh, it's the greatest drive in the history of, um, of the NFL. The only, the only drive that I could think that, that, that came close to this was probably the Elway drive back in the day against, against, uh, the Browns. But no, this is it. You know, the third down throw on the first set of downs to Chris Hogan is probably my favorite Brady pass of all time. It's innocuous right now.

Everybody thinks about that great Edelman grab. But if Tom and Chris Hogan hadn't connected on that third down, and I believe it was 10, that entire comeback would have been for nothing. They still had fourth down to work with. But, I mean, it's one of the singular best plays in Tom Brady's career, considering the consequences of it not being made, that it was a beautiful moment. It's one that I'll never forget. But that entire drive is the epitome of Tom Brady's career. That game is the epitome of Tom Brady's career.

And it really cemented his legacy as the GOAT. He might've been more accurate against, with the drive against Seattle a couple of years earlier, but this is the one that will stick out for me forever is that drive. Great moment. Absolutely great moment. And you talk about on the field, maybe his finest moment as a New England Patriot. I mean, that was a historic comeback, a comeback that most Patriots fans, if we're all being honest, didn't believe was really possible. You always believe in the back of your mind until the final whistle blows that there is a chance, but I don't think Patriots fans, myself included, thought there was a great chance they were going to pull that out. 28-3 at that point in the game.

It just didn't seem possible. But Brady made the impossible possible. Only at that point. Yeah, exactly. And actually, Julian Edelman's words at halftime lead me into what I'm going to talk about as my favorite Brady moment in just a moment moment because you heard so many players last night talk about what Brady did on the field and a lot of his greatest moments were mentioned but I thought one of the things that I loved most about this tribute was it struck such a great balance between Brady's professional accomplishments and

his persona who he really is the type of man he is. Drew Bledsoe brought that up and said, we're all here tonight to honor Tom's amazing accomplishments, but we also want to honor the man he's become, the man he truly is. And in my opinion, one of the only times that we saw a mortal Tom Brady on the field was in the aftermath of Super Bowl 51. For those of you that do know the backstory, and several of you Patriots fans do, Brady's mother Galen, who was in the aftermath of Super Bowl 51. For those of you that do know the backstory, and several of you Patriots fans do, Brady's mother Galen, who was in attendance last night, big smile, totally proud of her son, as was Tom Sr. and his sisters. The whole family was there, his children, nieces, nephews, just a great moment for the Brady family as a whole. But

Brady's mother Galen had been undergoing cancer treatment for much of the 2016 calendar year. It prevented her from being able to go to several games that she normally would have gone to had she been healthy. And even though she was still battling and fighting her fight, she made it a point to be in Houston at NRG Stadium, which formerly was Reliance Stadium. She made it her point to be there to watch herG Stadium, which formerly Reliant Stadium. She made it her point to be there to watch her son compete for a championship because she knew that he needed it. He needed it a lot. This was a tough year for Tom. There had been the deflate gate fiasco and so much that was on his plate and so much that he had gone through during that period. We always talk about Tom Brady pursuing the next one. We always talk about that next championship and that equipment manager

at Michigan who had all those rings and Brady saying, which one is your favorite? And him saying the next one. And Brady saying, yeah, you know what? That's the ticket. That's it. And adopting that really as what motivated him to be the greatest player in NFL history. But that next one in that moment wasn't necessarily the game winning touchdown. It wasn't the accolades. It wasn't the fifth championship. He had just led his team to on the field was about him giving his mom one more hug, another hug, knowing she was there getting healthy, fighting to fight the good fight to make sure that she was there for her family.

That's what the next one was for Tom Brady. And that, to me, is my favorite Brady memory. That will always be my favorite Brady memory. And watching him embrace his mom, taking the immortality of Tom Brady on the field, because we've seen him do so many amazing things on the field that most of us would just scratch our heads and say, how did he do that?

How did he lead his team there? How did he take his team on his back and be able to lead them to victory in that circumstance? In that moment, we had literally just seen it, but for him to be able to get that moment and watch the emotion on his face, the tears rolled down his face as he grabbed his mom and hugged her. To me, that is something that was so indelible because having lost my father just a few years earlier, the value of family was something that was so important to me and remains important to me until this day. And having the chance to give my mom a hug and show her my appreciation for how much she's done for me is something that always motivates me.

And it motivated Tom. So at that moment, I felt a kinship with him. I felt something that was, that made me like Tom Brady for only one day. I'm completely unlike Tom Brady in every other facet. He's got it all over me in every aspect, but that was one situation where I did feel a kinship with him. So that touched me. It definitely touched my heart

and it still does to this day. And even last night, when you see him embrace his mom, knowing that she's healthy now and she has, you know, gone beyond the limits of what cancer tried to take from her. It's still a special moment and you can tell it's still a special moment for him every single time. That will always be my favorite Tom Brady memory. That's fantastic. That's that's absolutely fantastic. And I'm glad you let me go first. But you just you just topped them all, Mike. You just laid us all to waste. Well, again, I really don't think there is a wrong answer when you ask someone what their

favorite Brady memory was. If your favorite Brady memory is something he did on the field, that's absolutely fair game, folks. Whatever inspires you and whatever touches you is something that you love to share and i think murph's you know moment that he shared today was so poignant because that moment my moment wouldn't have been possible unless those moments were completed on the field you know maybe there would have been an emotional a tearful hug for tom brady as parents especially his mom if they had lost that super bowl just knowing she was there to support him. But the fact that it came on the heels of one of the most amazing things you'll ever see a professional athlete do was even more special. And it became that because of what Brady does on the field. So folks, drop us a line in the

comments section below. Let us know your favorite tom brady memory the goat got his nightmare and we hope that we've done him justice here by recapping it and giving you a little insight as to what our favorite brady memories here are and some of the great moments that we shared things that stood out to us we'd love to hear what you have to say sheila thank you so much for allowing murph and i to indulge our tom Brady fandom, if only for a day. Bottom line, Murph, we all like to think that we're above fandom in the media, and we are called upon to be above that in certain areas and cover things with an objective point of view. But at the end of the day, there's a reason I watch the games twice.

Absolutely. You know? So well said. I sit there, my first sit down is to watch the game as a fan. My second sit down is to watch the game as a professional and be able, you know, I'm lucky enough to come here and share all that stuff with you. At the end of the day,

under you, you'll pull everything back and we've got, we've got Patriots jerseys hanging in our closet. Absolutely. We all start as fans folks. And it's something that will always be with you. Your fandom is something that is important and it really is ingrained in every vein of every boston sports fan out there it is different here

and i think we've explained that and i think that i think that ceremony at gillette stadium on wednesday night proved it so folks thank you so much for coming along on the ride with us here on locked on patriots and taking a trip back in time with us to an era when Brady and Belichick ruled the roost in New England. And we are moving on here, folks, because we're not going to close the week yet without talking about all the rest of the action in Foxborough this week. Mandatory minicamp wrapped up. Drake May hanging around for the next couple of weeks. What is his journey going to

look like into training camp and what is gerard mayo thinking what is he going to do as he prepares for his first training camp as patriots head coach we're going to answer all those questions and more throughout the weeks here heading into training camp starting with tomorrow's episode so stay locked in you're not going to want to miss a single second of the action but we talked about gratitude what can i say i have a gratitude for a guy named tom as well and that's this gentleman on the opposite side of the screen here always willing to take the ball for the handoff there's no one else i would have rather have shared tom brady memories with than you today my friend before i let you go please let everyone know where they can interact with you reach out to you

what you got marinating in murph's kitchen between now and next Monday when we come back here for active present day Patriots mailbag. Well, I'm still digging through the weeds here to get this Marty Mapo piece out. Hopefully I have that out on a Sunday. Other than that, you can follow me on Zitter at TMurph207. Whenever Murph puts pen to paper or voice to microphone, it is appointment listening, appointment viewing, and you're always going to be entertained and informed. You can't ask for more, just as you were last night at Gillette Stadium watching Tom Brady take his rightful spot at the top of the pantheon of Patriots greats.

And don't forget to stay locked in to Locked On Patriots, and thank you all, especially you everydayers, for making us a part of your daily Patriots coverage. On behalf of my good friend, that counter Murphy, Fisto himself, the legendary Thomas Murphy, I'm Mike DeBate reminding you all to stay safe and to stay well and to be the change you wish to see in the world. Have a great day, everyone. We'll see you back here again tomorrow on Locked on Patriots.