Locked On Patriots - Daily Podcast On The New England Patriots - Thoughts On Tom: Brady, Patriots Prepare to Move Forward - 3/19/2020

Episode Date: March 19, 2020

As the reality of Tom Brady’s departure from New England begins to settle in, host Mike D’Abate welcomes Ian Glendon of Full Press Coverage. The duo discuss Brady’s decision to leave New England, why the pieces are still in place to debunk the Patriots’ ‘tanking theory’ and share their favorite memory of Tom Brady in a Patriots uniform.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Patriots fans, you are now locked in to the Locked On Patriots Podcast. I'm going to show you how to make a beautiful and beautiful flower. I'm going to use a small flower pot. I'm going to use a small pot Hello to all of you, Foxborough faithful. It is Thoughts on Tom Thursday here on the Locked on Patriots podcast, your daily home for news notes and analysis infused with the occasional opinion on your six-time Super Bowl champions,

the New England Patriots. My name is Mike DeBate. I am your host of the Locked on your six-time Super Bowl champions, the New England Patriots. My name is Mike DeBate. I am your host of the Locked On Patriots podcast, which of course is a proud part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And because it's your team every day, that means your questions, your comments, and your feedback always welcomed and appreciated

and can always be sent to me by reaching out to me and following me on Twitter at MDABATEFPC. Thank you. asking it to play the latest episode of Locked On Patriots. Pats fans, it is only Thursday, and it has already been the longest week in Patriots Nation in approximately 20 years. Reality is starting to set in that Tom Brady will no longer be our quarterback in 2020. And folks, I'm not going to lie to you, it doesn't feel any better today than it did two days ago. In fact, it's probably going to be quite a while before it feels any better at all. Patriots Nation still misses Tom.

You miss him. I miss him. We all miss him. And what's really amazing is technically, folks, he's not even really gone yet. The deal, which many figured would be made official on Wednesday, still hasn't been made official as of yet. But make no mistake about it. I'm being very clear on this.

Those of you that are expecting a Josh McDaniels-type change of heart, it's almost a near certainty that that will not happen. The actual holdup when it comes to the signing of a contract is not a difference of opinion. It's not a change of heart on Tom Brady's part. It's simply about deciding on where the best location is for Tom to take his physical to make the deal official. Don't forget, the COVID-19 scare has everybody altering their plans. And apparently, even when you're the greatest quarterback of all time, some things in life are just bigger priorities. But Tom Brady is going to officially be a buccaneer.

And yesterday here on the Locked On Patriots podcast, I welcomed in our good buddy Murph. Thomas Murphy joined me, and we talked a little bit about why Tom Brady is no longer a Patriot. What got us to this point? And Murph was angry at times, but he was also very insightful when it came to his opinion and his takes on the Patriots' approach to free agency, what that means for the team going forward,

and what type of potential fit Tom Brady will make in Tampa. Well, we just scratched the surface on that yesterday, and tomorrow, Friday here on Locked On Patriots, myself and a very special guest will delve into exactly

what kind of logistical fit Tom will make in Tampa and also take a very deep dive into what Patriots fans can expect to see out of the quarterback position in 2020. Hmm, quarterbacks. Who do we know that's a pretty good quarterback mind? I might have just tipped my hand, folks, as to who I have lined up as tomorrow's guest, but whether you're sure or unsure as to who it may be, tune in tomorrow and I promise you, you won't be disappointed. But today is Thursday, folks, and I introduce today as Thoughts on Tom Thursday. And now that we've had over 24 hours to get rid of some of that anger about Tom Brady no longer being a New England Patriot, I thought today would be a great opportunity to talk

about some of the great memories that we have about Tom Brady, and also the lessons that he taught those Patriots that will be remaining in Foxborough will always be felt in the Patriots' locker room. So hopefully for all of you listening out there, today's show will have a positive feel to it. And who better to join me on a Thoughts on Tom Thursday than the Pope of Positivity himself. My good friend Ian Glendon of Full Press Coverage joins me today, and we will talk a little bit about his impressions of the Brady negotiations, why the Patriots' slow approach to free agency does not mean they're tanking,

and we'll end on a high note by describing our most indelible and favorite moment of Tom Brady in a Patriots uniform. And without giving too much away, folks, neither one of us describes a moment that involves in-game action on the football field. So settle in, folks. Even though Ian and I were both staunch advocates of the position that Brady was coming back to Foxborough, it is an honor to share the microphone with him. And I hope you enjoy what we have to say about Tom and what kind of future lies ahead for

both Tom in Tampa and the New England Patriots back here in Foxborough. First, folks, business still goes on. And amidst the Brady sorrow that we're all feeling right now, Patriots free agency continues to roll on. And in the past 24 hours, the Patriots have made one key addition, but have had two key departures. However, I start today with a follow-up on a news story that broke on Tuesday. No, folks, I'm not talking about Tom Brady for once.

On Thursday, your New England Patriots announced that Joe Tooney had officially signed his franchise tag tender worth approximately $14 million. That officially returns Tooney to the Patriots roster. Now, even though he signed the tender, it's still unclear about what the Pats' plans are for Tooney, both in the immediate future and beyond. The official team position is that they'd like to work out a long-term deal with Joe. However, $14 plus million is a lot of money to be carrying, and the Patriots are still in need of some cap relief.

So if a long-term deal cannot be struck, the Patriots may do their best to try to trade Tooney in hopes of gaining some additional clout when it comes to draft capital or simply some salary cap relief. But regardless of what their intentions are, Joe Tooney is now officially back as a New England Patriot, and he joins both Matthew Slater and Devin McCourty as the three most prominent free agent re-signings that the Patriots have made this offseason. But back to the addition and departures that I spoke about earlier.

And in a little bit of a departure from the way I brought the news yesterday, we'll start with the departures first, and we'll end on a high note in honor of this Thoughts on Tom Thursday by bringing you some information about the Patriots' latest addition. And I start with the departure at the linebacker position. And frankly, folks, this position is starting to look a little bit thin. Already dealing with the departures of Kyle Van Noy and Jamie Collins, it looked like Alandon Roberts might have been someone the Patriots needed to keep in the fold. However, that's not going to happen, and he is going to a familiar place. That's right, folks. Brian Flores and the Miami Dolphins

have done it again. Alandon Roberts will be signing a deal with the Dolphins after enjoying one of his most productive seasons, if not his most productive season as a pro. He was a Patriots captain in 2019, and he was a key member of the Patriots defense when it came to stopping the run. But Roberts' 2019 season will forever be remembered as the time he filled in admirably at fullback when both James Devlin and Jakob Johnson were both on injured reserve.

So those that were hoping to see Roberts back in the fold in New England in 2020, unfortunately, they'll be seeing him in Miami teal as he joins Kyle Vannoy, Ted Karras, and a host of others that one-time War Patriots blew and have now taken their talents to South Beach. So Brian Flores and Matt Patricia of the Detroit Lions continue to treat the Patriots like their own personal Amazon.com, but they're not the only former Patriots coaches that had their eye on former Patriots players. Recently hired Joe Judge of the New York Giants got in on the act on Thursday morning when it was announced that defensive back and special teamer Nate Ebner would be joining the New York football giants in the Meadowlands. Now according to Mike Dusalt of Patriots.com,

Ebner was the kind of bedrock player, according to Mike Dusalt of Patriots.com, Ebner was the kind of bedrock player that the Patriots dynasty had been built on. He might not have gotten a lot of headlines, but he did the dirty work that helped the team win. When ultimately replaceable on the field, Ebner was a special person and player who brought a lot to New England. He was very much liked and respected by Bill Belichick and someone that really helped to keep that special teams unit together. The Patriots re-sign Matthew Slater,

and his leadership and his ability to be a mentor for young players is going to be tested to the limit this year. No Joe Judge, no Nate Ebner. A lot of the weight of that mentoring responsibility is going to be on Slater's shoulders. I can tell you from personal experience, there is no one more equipped to handle it. He'll handle it well, and he'll even exceed people's expectations in that department.

But again, folks, the New England Patriots roster continues to thin out. However, last but certainly not least, it wasn't all about bad news, because the Patriots did bring in a new defensive lineman. And he's a pretty good one, folks. Bo Allen, formerly of the Philadelphia Eagles and most recently of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Yes, folks, those bucking hat Buccaneers. No, kidding aside, folks, be nice to the Buccaneers. They have to take good care of our goat down there. But Bo Allen arrives in New England and he's a prototypical nose tackle and most likely he'll slide into the role vacated

by Danny Shelton. Allen spent four years with the Eagles after entering the league as a seventh-round pick. He is a former Super Bowl champion. That's right, folks. He was on that Eagles team that beat your Patriots in 2017. He spent two years in Tampa Bay after that and played a career-low 16% of the defensive snaps with Tampa Bay in 2019, but his size and experience likely make him a pretty good fit in New England, and he's also a pretty good special teams contributor. So again, the Patriots are going to need help in that area.

And Allen fills two key voids. But folks, it all comes back to voids, doesn't it? And no player, and I repeat, no player will ever be able to fill the void left behind by Tom Brady. I know, folks, it's tough. It's tough for us all. But in the interest of positivity and trying to move forward, Ian Glendon of Full Press Coverage will join me momentarily here on the Locked On Patriots podcast, and we

will discuss how Brady and the Patriots got here, where both sides will go from here. And last, we'll wrap it all up here on the Locked On Patriots podcast by sharing our thoughts on Tom. Patriots fans, the last time my guest today was here on Locked On Patriots, I promised him that once Tom Brady made his decision, he would be back here to discuss it. But folks, I would be flat out lying if I said I didn't expect this conversation was going to go in the direction that we are forced to take it in today. But he will continue to fight the good fight, and that's why he's still here.

He is the editor-in-chief of Full Press Coverage, the host of a plethora of shows on Full Press Radio. And why do I get the sneaking suspicion that him being a resident of Tampa St. Pete, he might be dipping his toe into that Bucks beat sooner rather than later? He is my esteemed colleague, my best good friend, Ian Glendon joins us today. Ian, hello. La, la, la. What's up, buddy? How are we doing? Well, you know, we're doing, man. We're surviving. We're moving forward. You know, and I say some of that tugging cheek. I actually say some of that seriously.

I mean, we are surviving. We are moving forward. Times are interesting. But here on the Lockdown Patriots podcast, we always try to give people a little bit of a break from some of the tough news that continues to swirl around in our society. But news of the day up here in New England, as you know, my friend, is the Patriots have themselves a new nose tackle. No, just kidding. I say that with all due respect to Bo Allen. It's Tom Brady. And I've been saying all week long that this is the news that Patriots fans just never want to believe is true. And we all knew that Tom wasn't going to be the quarterback forever.

But I think most of us assumed that his leaving would be via retirement, not free agency. And you and I beat the Brady's coming back drum for quite some time. And naturally, it was a disappointment, I'm sure. I will say this, even though nothing is still official yet, folks, in case you were hoping that Tom was going to pull a Josh McDaniels, Jeff Darlington of ESPN reported this morning that there is, quote, no concern over finding a doctor to perform Tom Brady's physical. He's able to make that happen today in New York. It would be ideal if it was the Bucs team doctors, but these are unprecedented times, and everyone is on the same page.

Everything is moving along just fine. So as Jack Bauer would say, damn it. But in any case, buddy, with the official word about to hit at any time, I'm going to take this in a little bit of a different direction. I'm not going to ask you what your reaction was, because I think our listeners and I know what your reaction was. It was the same as everybody's disappointment. But when you look at the situation as a whole, Thomas Murphy, our good friend, joined me here yesterday on Lockdown Patriots,

and we talked about assigning blame and the slice of the blame pie. And although I hate to do that, it's the most appropriate way to begin our conversation today. When you look at this situation with Brady heading to Tampa, what do you believe were the catalysts or the main catalysts in things getting to this point? You know, I might – I honestly don't consider this a a pointing finger situation like i don't think there was necessarily you know everyone wants to say you know bill belichick wrote him out he couldn't handle bill belichick this that and the other finally it just it broke i i think tom just ultimately felt like he wanted a different challenge and and i i've kind of you know i i didn't believe, you know, again,

we talked about this the last time we were on here, and obviously every time we're on the show, like, you know, leading up to this, I never thought that he was going to leave. I thought eventually things were going to work out. I did think it was going to be, you know, at the most, maybe something in the two for 25 a year range, obviously the, the bucks were, were clearly more willing and able to, to, uh, surpass that. And then some, and I think ultimately I, I think he just looked at it as an opportunity to

challenge himself and, and, you know, in, in hindsight, you think about Tom and you know, um, the, you know, how he motivates himself and it's about challenging himself and trying to prove people wrong and this, that, and the other. And I think he looked at the situation, he looked at a, a good landing spot in Tampa and, uh, an opportunity to go and, and, and, you know, win some more. And look, I don't, at the end of the day, I don't think really anyone's necessarily to blame. I don't think there was one instance that was like, that's it. I, you know, I'm just, I'm taking off, but, you know, I think it's, you know, like I say, it's just, it's, it's a, it's a weird time in New England. It really is. And there's a lot of people, you know, like you and I, who have obviously, uh, watched, you know,

from, you know, a young and young adult age through now where you know we can kind of take a little bit different perspective on it because again we we were you know i was a teenager uh you were you were still uh you know you're a young kid you were what 18 19 or so like when uh when brady started something like that something close so yeah 20 when he first started yeah yeah exactly so like you know we've we've you know, we've kind of experienced it from two sides of it, as being younger fans and then, of course, you know, now covering the team and everything like that. So I think there's a little bit different perspective on it.

And I think, you know, at the end of the day, it was time to move on. And, you know, it's disappointing. I would have hoped and I thought he was going to be a guy who was going to be here for his entire career. But at the end of the day, I don't think he's to blame. I don't think Belichick's to blame. I don't think Kraft's to blame. Now, there are certain things that happened throughout the course of last season, perhaps, you know, part of the reason he moved on, maybe. But I don't think it's necessarily.

Well, for example, I think Antonio Brown and I hate to bring it up, but, you know, I think that whole situation really, you know, if you're pinpoint one thing that kind of spurred this on, maybe it was Antonio Brown, but it's not for the reason you think. I think it's because they made the attempt to sign him. They cut him and all of a sudden they're saddled with that that cap issue without the player. And that really was kind of where you're at, because like the Patriots, obviously, you know, they if they wanted to make it work, I think they could have figured out a way to to work the contract. But, you know, obviously, Brady has to agree to it, too. And when the Bucs are coming down saying, hey, look, you can come down here, you could spend two years down here. We're going to give you a 30 million plus. Uh, and, and a lot of it is, is guaranteed or, or, you know, not incentive based, which is, you know, the, the feeling that the Patriots contract would have been, or was offered to him. So I think at the end of the day, I think this was just a mutual

split that, you know, kind of, it's disappointing. Like I said, I I'm kind of end of the day, I think this was just a mutual split that, you know, kind of. It's disappointing, like I said, I'm kind of not lost for words, but it's it's just hard to kind of put all the thoughts into a nice, tight wording, I guess, because, again, we're not really going to know. I think people are going to suspect things like, oh, well, he just, you know, Belichick was tired of him. He wants to go, you know, stick it to Belichick. No, I don't think any of that's true. I think he spent 20 years with the same group of people for a long time. And I think it was just he just wanted a different challenge. And he doesn't have that many more opportunities to do that. I mean, he is going to be 43 by the time the season starts.

So and this is just a perfect opportunity. It just, like I said, the Tampa thing seemed like a surprise, but when you think about it and you just think about the situation, you're like, you know what? It makes a lot of sense for him to go down there with the, with the players that, that are on the roster right now, their ability to go out and get more players. I mean, they were in a position where they have a young, good defense. I mean, that's going to look a lot better when they're not playing, you know, 20 extra possessions because of interceptions. And, you know, talented wide receivers at the Patriots, like, yes, they could have added,

you know, quote unquote weapons and added talent to this team, but it would have been a lot more difficult. And I think it would have it just it would have taken a lot more difficult. And I think it would have, um, it just, it would have taken a lot more work to get it done. And I don't think Brady was, or Tom was, was willing to really ride it out, you know,

because again, there was a little bit of a time crunch with it because again, after, uh, you know, after the new league year started his 13 and a half million cap, it was going to be on the roster on the books no matter what even if he resigned so all of a sudden you're talking about having to get this contract

done before the league year starts and then somehow trying to to work in all this and i think he was just like look i see tampa as a good opportunity they they kind of are you know they they were willing to to give me what you know, he was looking for. And, you know, he saw the opportunity and, you know, he took it. And good for him because at the end of the day, no matter what some people may say, his legacy is never going to diminish here. He's going to get a statue here. And hopefully he plays two years because I think when Tampa comes up to play New England in 2021, I think people are finally going to

really heap praise on him the way he deserves. And I think that's going to be a nice moment for everyone involved, including him and the fans of the Patriots. Absolutely. I think you made a lot of great points. First of all, you mentioned being at a loss for words. I think that really encompasses all of Patriots Nation right now, my friend. I think we're all at a loss for words. And naturally that really encompasses all of Patriots nation right now, my friend, I think we're all at a loss for words. And naturally when something like this happens, our good friend, Alex Barth put out a tweet yesterday that I thought was funny about the

different levels of, you know, acceptance when a tragedy happens and it's denial grief, you know, things of that nature and the grieving process that everybody goes through. But I think a lot of Patriots fans are feeling that look, you don't develop a 20-year relationship. I called it in my column earlier this week, a love affair.

I mean, that's basically what it was between Tom Brady and the New England Patriots fans as a whole. He was the glue that held this franchise together. And now that he's going elsewhere, it is an adjustment for a lot of Patriots fans. So if you find yourself at a loss of words, my friend, don't feel badly because I think we all are in a lot of respects. I'm glad that you mentioned Tampa and the fit that he has in Tampa, because I've seen a lot of this going

back and forth about, oh, well, Tampa is not necessarily the greatest fit for him. And that's the Brady spin. And I'm surprised about a lot of things. And that kind of leads me into a question that I wanted to ask you today. You actually pinpointed Philip Rivers going to the Indianapolis Colts on a one-year deal back in February. And folks, we do have audio. You can download it via the FBC app. We have proof on this. And it got me to thinking about the market for Tom and why Tampa may have been pushed to the forefront. I really happen to think that of a lot of teams that were involved, even of those that were rumored, I think Tampa is actually a better fit than most of them logistically. When you look, you mention the wide receivers.

You mention the two tight end sets between Cameron Brate and O.J. Howard. Now Tom has the ability to rediscover that. He was very prolific in that type of an offense when the Patriots had Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez. That was a very, very good lethal combination of wrong choice of words, folks. I apologize for that. Seriously, I sincerely do. But in any case, when you get to that type of level of, you know, level of, of skill, you're looking at the wide receiver position.

They do have a pretty good running game and Bruce Arians being the glue that holds this together. But that being said, there were a lot of teams that were rumored to be interested in Tom that either didn't end up making a play for him, or we're not able to go to the level that Tampa wanted to keeping the Patriots aside out of this Las Vegas Raiders Raiders, the Tennessee Titans, the San Francisco 49ers were rumored. I don't know if they were ever really in it, but they were rumored. Were you surprised that the market for Tom Brady when he hit free agency was not maybe a little bit more robust than we thought it was going to be? Not really, because I think i just think we weren't going to learn

a lot about that because i we we've talked about it on our show and it's it's a it's a unique situation because i i felt that you know in a vacuum uh next season in the year after tom brady makes two-thirds of this league better if he is the quarterback over the guy that they have including like i said i think he's a better quarterback than Philip Rivers. I think, you know, like I said, in a vacuum, he would be better for the Saints, you know, but again, the Saints would obviously never, you know, do that. So I'm saying, like, I think there was a lot of interest. I think there was maybe a, hey, you know, what are we thinking here?

Thanks, but no thanks from tom and you move on because again you don't want to alienate either the current player you have and and in a lot of cases that was that was it like who are you gonna you like are the titans gonna go out and say yeah we want to get tom brady and then tom goes oh you know what tennessee's not the right fit and then they're like okay go back to ryan tannell like you can't do that so there's wink, nod, nod, like, you know, Hey, would you be interested in this? Probably not going to work out. Okay. You know, unfortunately, but you know, we'll move on. So I, I think, I think there was a market and the market was, it was just, uh, you know, under the radar, because again, this isn't a, a normal free agent quarterback courtship. I mean,

you're, you're, you're courting the greatest quarterback of all time, but at an age that, you know, you're, you're, you're basically, you know, look, Tampa, Tampa decided to move on from a young all, but, you know, you know, I, I guess a, uh, you know, either you love James, so you don't, but he's still a young former first overall pick that has a Pro Bowl season under him who has, you know, a lot of talent. They decided to move on and greatly shorten their window. I mean, they have a very small window right now, but the idea of being able to bring in Brady, we've already seen the Brady effect take place. You know, that to them was more valuable. And I think a lot of teams would have seen that in the same light.

However, they weren't going to publicly court him because again, it's, it's, you know, you're basically alienating who you have at the moment and, you know, for a very short window, basically you're selling your soul for a short Superbowl window if you're for certain teams. And I think, um, you know, if he, if he wasn't heading on age 43, I think you would have seen, you know, if this was 39 year old Tom Brady, you know, I he wasn't heading on age 43, I think you would have seen, you know, if this was 39 year old Tom Brady, you know, I think this would have been a much, much bigger market for him just because, again, you would imagine there's probably a few more years than two.

But look, the Bucks situation worked out well for them. They were willing to to kind of go all out. And, you know, they met the needs that he had. And according to people who have talked about it, like and you know they met the the needs that he had and according to to people who have talked about it like you know they had a conversation and one of the selling points was that the players around him and it's it's not a knock on the Patriots players it's just you know that the idea of playing with Chris Godwin and uh you know uh Mike Evans is enticing and I saw a PFF a pro football focused ad ad is like their combined uh uh rating is over 90

and the last time tom brady had that was in 2007 and we all know what happened when he had a pair of receivers that had that great of an impact on the field so uh again i i think uh it just kind of worked itself out i think there was a a larger market than people saw. But again, at the same time, realistically, I don't think a lot of teams were able to offer Tom what what Tampa could because Tampa just happened to have a quarterback that was hitting free agency as well. So, you know, it just like I said, I think it was just it's an unprecedented free agency courtship for a 43 year old quarterback. I mean, generally, it was just it's an unprecedented free agency courtship for a 43-year-old quarterback. I mean, generally, you don't do that unless, you know, you're signing a 43-year-old quarterback off the street to be a backup.

That's pretty much what you're doing. In this case, you're signing a 43-year-old quarterback to be the face of your franchise and win you a Super Bowl. So it's an unprecedented situation altogether. And I think ultimately the Bucs realized like, hey, we kind of have what you would think he wants. And in addition to that, they have the ability to continue to shift and build the team around him. And if you believe some of the reports and look, this is the Brady effect. Players want to go play for him. And I think that speaks volumes between that and the reaction of his now former teammates, some of the things they've said about him. It speaks

volumes as to who he is, not only as a football player, but just as a person. So, yeah, I think that answered the question. I think I kind of went off there because my mind was rambling a little bit. But yeah, it's just like I said, I think it's just it's an unprecedented situation i think the market was was bigger than we we saw but i think it fizzled very quickly because i you know like i said i think there's a lot of thanks but no thanks from tom um okay we're going to move on and we'll go back to you know our original plan but you know i i think a lot of teams had to at least inquire about uh you know the possibility of the the greatest of all time coming and playing for them no i don't think you went off the rails at all. I think you made great points, and I happen to agree with you,

and I know a lot of people are going to be shocked by that, but it has been said that Ian and I share half of the same brain, folks, so that's one of the reasons why we get along so well, one of the big reasons why I always have him on here as well. We are going to end on a Tom note today. There's no question about it, but I did want to switch gears very briefly, Bud, and I wanted to talk to you about the aftermath and basically having to pick up the pieces now here in New England. The Patriots are experiencing, quote unquote, a mass exodus, if you believe what you read on social media, of some of their free agents that are leaving town. And there's a lot of reasons for that.

And, you know, we will cover those here on Locked On Patriots. Obviously, Kyle Van Noy, Jamie Collins, the two big names that a lot of people were, you know, a little surprised about. I was actually not surprised by either one of them. I think most Patriots media, a lot of Patriots fans expected both of those guys to stay. Thought maybe Collins might have had a little bit better of a shot to stay, uh, than Van Noy, but ultimately, you know, they're, they're going to chase their, their, uh, their gold and they have every right to do that. But to me now, the re-signings of

guys like Devin McCourty and Matthew Slater is so important for the Patriots to try to maintain that level of the Patriot way and try to maintain some level of continuity. When you look at the team constituted, how much do you think that Bill Belichick is going to be leaning on those two in particular to provide some stability and some direction moving forward for the franchise? No, I think he'll be leaning on them quite a bit because like, you know, without Tom Brady. And again, I mentioned it before, you know, the admiration and just the, I mean, glowing respect that his teammates had for him. I read a post from Adam Butler and he said the first time he ever met Tom, he came up to him and called him by his first name. And he had never spoken to Tom Brady before.

And that made such a such an impact on him as someone who came in like probably wide eyed and like, oh, my God, that's that's Tom Brady. But, you know, Tom came up. Hey, you know, we've we've heard so many stories like that about Tom. That's who he is. I mean, there's there's no coincidence that, you know, a lot of these stories have a lot of the same themes to them. And and there's you I, I challenge anyone out there to, to find a single, single bad thing said by any former teammate that he's ever played with. And I can guarantee you there's, there's, there's zero out there. That, that speaks a lot of volumes in the locker room. And it's certainly going to be something that the Patriots are going to need other players to do.

And, and guys like Matthew Slater and, and Devin McCourty and Jason McCourty, you know, those guys certainly are capable of doing that, but it's going to be a group to do. And guys like Matthew Slater and Devin McCourty and Jason McCourty, you know, those guys certainly are capable of doing that. But it's going to be a group effort, I think, because, you know, at the end of the day, no matter what, just like, you know, we talked about yesterday on our show, you know, Tom Brady's been that rock no matter what, whether it's for fans and dealing with things in their lives or just the Patriots team in generally, he's always been that rock for that team. And, you know, look, it's going to be interesting to see, you know, what they do, but I have a lot of confidence in the players

that they do have, and I'll be, you know, I'm intrigued as to how, you know, Belichick and this front office is going to approach the rest of this offseason. And, you know, in a way I'm excited and disappointed, but, you know, it's time And, you know, I, you know, in a way I'm excited and disappointed, but, you know, it's time to, you know, turn the page and, you know, close, close the, you know, the book on this era of Patriots football and kind of look to see what's next, because look, it's not it's not all doom and gloom.

And, you know, we have some I'm sorry, the Patriots have some really good players still in place, not only that are skilled, but are very adequate leaders. Obviously, you know, Matthew Slater is another guy that's very well respected, not only by his teammates, but across the entire league. So he's a guy that can really command a lot of respect and really, you know, keep pushing that Patriot way. But, you know, it would be an understatement to say that, or it would not be appropriate to say that things would be the same because tom brady was the patriot way as much as bill belichick put put it in place like tom brady was the reason why the patriot way has you know the quote-unquote

patriot way has become what it is because he is who he was and he was the player he was and and not only that but the person and all that. So there's going to be a leadership void. But that's understandable because, again, it's you don't just replace Tom Brady. And, you know, there's certainly players there that are capable of of helping, you know, minimize that that drop off in leadership. But, yeah, no, I have all the confidence in the world and guys like Devin McCourty and, you know, Matthew Slater and all that. And, look, it tells me one thing, and this is the most ridiculous thing I've seen out there around Twitter the last few days is this whole idea that the Patriots would ever tank. First of all, I think tanking is the most idiotic approach to any sport ever. I just, to me, I hate the idea of it. I hate the even thought

of a team doing it or just saying, oh, we're going to tank for, for this unknown. You know, it just, no, it just, it doesn't, uh, best case scenario, look what happened with Indianapolis. You know what I mean? Like, that's probably the best case scenario is like you lose that many games after losing Peyton Manning for a season and you're able to get Andrew Luck and what happened you know exactly absolutely I am so glad that you said that and uh again we are going to end on a positive note here but that was something that I'm so glad a point that you did make that I wanted to reiterate and I wanted to expound upon just a little bit is the tanking argument people see this mass exodus that I talked about earlier and they look at it and say oh well that's it bill's clearing out the roster every the cupboards are going bare uh you know the patriots roster looks like the shelves of people that are trying to find uh toilet tissue

now and in supermarkets but the bottom line is is nothing about the patriot way nothing about the way the patriots have done business over the past 20 years indicate that this is a franchise headed by robert craft in the ownership box headed by Bill Belichick at the head coaching position, whatever tank would ever throw a season away for the off chance that they might be able to get the first round pick and develop, you know, a player from there. People tell me it works, you know, in Indianapolis. Oh, well, he did it in Indy. Well, look at what happened in Indianapolis. Nothing is guaranteed for sure, folks. You always have to go

for the best opportunity that you can get when you can take it. And that's exactly what the Patriots are doing here. So I'm glad that you said that. And I'm glad we can expound upon that a little bit, because to me, the tanking argument, it might win you a snarky Twitter battle, folks. But anyone in the know knows that that's not the way the Patriots operate. And that's the message that you should listen to here when you hear about all these people telling you that the Patriots are tanking. They're not. Not to mention we're actually only really one full day into actual free agency. We're three days in if you want to count that tampering period. You know, there's a lot of time left to build a roster. So trust in the process. And the Patriots may take a step back

before they take a step forward. But I assure you, the days of one and 15 are not returning to New England. This franchise won't allow that to happen. And even that's I'm sorry, that's real quick. Even that's a it's a horribly inaccurate. Not saying you I'm saying like because that idea is obviously out there it's like oh well you know brady's gone the patriots are going back to 1 and 15 they they were 1 and 15 what once in their franchise history exactly in fact they've actually if you go through their history they've had a pretty good uh uh there's been obviously a few lean years and the most recent being the early 90s right before craft and everything like that would probably the worst of the worst for the patriots and uh this whole idea that you know they're just gonna lose fans is also kind of idiotic in a sense because again they've they've

sold out every home game since 1994 which again was a long time before they won super bowls and had tom brady so um this franchise is going to be fine and And this idea that they're all of a sudden going to drop off. And look, I do believe that they will take a step back because I do think, you know, at the end of the day, Tom Brady was the single biggest factor in this success. Obviously, so many pieces, so many things went into winning these Super Bowls. But, you know, if I had to pinpoint, obviously, one person that was the deciding factor in a lot of that, it's easily Tom Brady.

And, of course, you're not going to have the same sort of success. No team has ever had that success. So the idea that you're going to expect everything to be the same is just that's a little wishful thinking, my friend. And, you know, I do have a positive feel. Like, I do feel like this team is going to rebound. I, you know, I'd like to see what's going to happen the rest of the offseason before I make any sort of, you know, predictions as to where they're going to stand, because, you know, to sit here and say, oh, they're going to suck at this point. And there hasn't even been a draft or the rest of free agency or anything.

Yeah, that's a little foolish and a little in the moment thinking. And I think this team will rebound. You've got to expect them to take a little bit of a step back because guess what? You don't have the greatest quarterback of all time anymore. And a lot of teams don't. It's true. Only Tampa is right now. You're absolutely right.

And it will be an adjustment. And, of course, times are a little bit lean in New England right now. But, again, buddy, we are all about the positivity. And I told you all, folks, that we were going to end on a positive note. And we are going to do that. Tom is officially going to become a Buccaneer at some point, whether it's today or whether it's a couple of days from now. And I joked yesterday with Murph that this makes me want to hide under my Buccan hat. And I love using that term. So I'm going to keep using it. But I thought we'd take a moment today and take

it home with a positive memory, because, again, we always end on a high note. So Ian, what are your lasting impressions of Tom in New England? And quite frankly, buddy, is there really even one moment that you can select as your favorite, seeing that there are so many? I think I can. And obviously, you know, you can easily pick, you know, winning Super Bowls and all that. But his interaction with his kids and his family, with the team and just how he, you know, we all remember the, you know, the Gronk and Vivi audio clip from the, you know, Super Bowl 53 parade. And just how his, you know, his family and his kids have you know really kind of grown up and you know there there's someone we both obviously know on twitter and everything like that that he put out a very very nice thread talking about his experience with that family being so close having worked game day um you know game you know working on game day and getting to

know him over the last 20 years and and i think at the end of the day, that's that's the lasting impression, because like, you know, we talk about it all the time when you're a kid. Athletes, you know, they're larger than life. You know, they're they're indestructible. There's nothing that they do wrong. But obviously, when you get older, you realize that, OK, you know, athletes are a lot of them are a lot like everyday people. And, you know, some of them have a lot of issues that, you know, as a kid, you don't really realize.

But like if if if I had kids, I don't. But if I did, if there's one person that I could, you know, point to and say, look, if you're going to if you're going to have a role model, if you're going to have someone that you're always you should you can you can, you can look up to not only in sport, but just on how to carry yourself in life. It's Tom Brady. And I think that's ultimately what, you know, the lasting impression for me is obviously the Superbowls, the winning and all that stuff, but to not only win and win at such a high rate, but to be such a good person, a good family man, a good husband, a good father, all that stuff. Like a great teammate, like I said earlier.

I mean, just look at all the posts from his his former teammates and any time they post about him. I mean, it's it's it's incredibly it's incredibly heartwarming. And, you know, currently right now it's gut wrenching because you see that and you realize, you know, obviously as a Patriots fan that it's over in New England. But, you know, to me, that's the lasting impression for me is that he did all this with so much grace and just humility and just, you know, humbleness. And, you know, he was never too big for anyone. He was never too big of a star. He was just he was that guy that took every single teammate under his wing, every single fan that loved and cheered for him.

He gave that love back. And that, to me, is probably going to be the biggest memory and the most lasting impression of Tom. Because, again, at the end of the day, he's going to be a part of this New England Patriots culture for a long time. Yes, he's going to take a couple-year break. But when he retires and he comes back and he gets his, um, gets his statue at Gillette stadium and, and, you know, he gets inducted into the hall of fame and, and all that. And, and you look, you know,

he's, I, I'd imagine he's going to, in some capacity, be in some capacity, be a, be a fixture around Gillette, um, whether it's it's you know showing up at games doing different interviews and stuff like that the guy you know he said it himself he's a patriot for life and I know people jumped on him like oh that's not what you know that's not exactly what no he is a patriot for life he may be taking a couple year hiatus away from the team but you know the guy is is a New England guy now and you know I at the end of the day, you can look, and if you have kids, if you have young adults trying to find their way, trying to figure out how do I approach this situation, how do I approach life, just point to Tom Brady and say,

do everything that he does. Because he did it not only on the field great, but off the field and in life. I think he really hit it out of the park so i think to me that that is ultimately what's gonna really last you know in in my mind i agree with you i i absolutely agree with you in terms of family uh my moment is a little bit different but it's sort of the same and uh it is from super bowl 51 folks but not the reason that you think the comeback the 28 to 3 obviously is going to live in the football annals of history, and it should.

But to me, the lasting impression that I will have of Tom Brady in a Patriots uniform is after the game, him reaching out and embracing his mother, Galen, who we all know had been fighting cancer for the past year. It was such an emotional year for Tom, and anybody that's in the know knows how much of a weight that was on him. That was one of the few times in his professional career where that quote-unquote next one that a lot of people like to associate with Brady, next ring, the next challenge, the next one was just, it wasn't about a first down. It wasn't about a divisional victory. It wasn't even about the fifth championship that he had just won. It was a moment where he was about to embrace his mother for the next years, and we've talked so many times about them, this was the moment that he poignantly showed, I think, his emotional durability, how tough he was emotionally. We've talked about how many times he's been tough physically, taken hits, bounced right back up, been there every single time his team needed him to answer the bell.

But at this point, it was almost like the guy that seemed too good to be true was human after all. Football didn't matter at that point to Tom Brady. All that mattered was the health of his mother and the warmth of his family around him. You saw his wife Giselle and his family around him as he embraced his mom. Of all the motivational factors for an athlete, I think the personal tend to be the most potent. And to me, that's the lasting impression that I'll always have of Tom Brady in a Patriots uniform. Confetti coming down around him, all the accolades,

cementing his legacy as the GOAT. But at that moment, his next one was about the next moment, the next minute that he was able to spend with his mom. And for a long time, he was unsure about whether or not that next moment was even going to come. So that's the perseverance, and that's the memory that I'll take with me with regard to Tom Brady. And he's provided so many of them, and I hope he's got a few more left in him in Tampa, because it doesn't make you any less of a Patriots fan, folks, to cheer on Tom Brady. I see some of that on social media, and it makes me sick.

After all of the years, 10-plus dual Hall of Fame careers, encompassing the 20 years that he spent here, you split up his time in New England, and he has two Hall of Fame careers, as our good friend Murph has said several times. So, Ian, what can I say? You're a great man, a great friend. There was no one that I wanted to discuss Tom Brady with more than you this week, and I appreciate you coming on. Folks, follow him on Twitter at IGLEN31. Find his great work, the work of all of the great writers that we have at FullPressCoverage.com, which is now available via the Apple app and Google Play app. So download both of those.

Also on the airwaves on radio shows such as FPC NFL Pre-Game, the Big Bad Bruins podcast with our good friend Chris Blackie, and of course, FPC Radio Live, G-Pop. Great listens, folks. I highly recommend all of them. Buddy, thank you so much for joining me today. Always an honor. Always a pleasure.

Absolutely. And we'll do it again soon. Absolutely. Look forward to it, my friend. And so, Patriots fans, if Ian and I sharing our sentimental thoughts on Tom Brady didn't bring a tear to your eye, we at least hope that it brought a smile to your face. Some of the great memories that Tom has brought us over the last 20 years deserve to be remembered in a positive fashion.

And today, I hope here by listening to Locked On Patriots that you began that process. Again, tomorrow here on Locked On Patriots, I will be joined by a special guest and we will break down the Patriots quarterback position. Are there still names out there, either via free agency or the draft, that might end up taking over

the Patriots' starting job in 2020. If not, what kind of quarterback can we expect Jarrett Stidham to be in 2020? And last but not least, we'll take an in-depth look at what type of quarterback Tom Brady will make in Tampa Bay. As always, please be sure to join me each and every day here on the Locked On Patriots podcast. Subscribe and download via your preferred podcast provider. And again, folks, don't forget that you can always listen on your smart device just by

asking it to play the latest episode of Locked On Patriots. Remember, everyone, it's a tough time out there, but we are all in this together. And for a limited time, Postmates is giving our listeners $100 of free delivery credit off of your first seven days. To start your free deliveries, download the Postmates app and be sure to use the promo code LOCKEDONNBA. Once again, I am Mike DeBate. I thank Ian Glendon for his time,

his insight, and his appearance today. But most of all, I thank you all so much for listening and for staying locked in to Locked On Patriots. And if you've enjoyed today's episode, now tell your smart device to play the most recent episode

of a Locked On NFL Draft. Stay safe, stay healthy, and have a great day, everyone.