On This Date in Sports September 30, 2001: A Man Named Brady
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
With Drew Bledsoe sidelined after a chest injury, the New England Patriots sitting at 0-2 are forced to start Tom Brady at quarterback against the Indianapolis Colts at Foxboro Stadium. Brady, a sixth-round pick in the 2000 NFL Draft, outplays Peyton Manning, completing 13 of 23 passes for 168 yards, as the Patriots clobber the Colts 44-13, with Manning throwing a pair of pick-sixes. Tom Brady would go on to lead the Patriots to their first Super Bowl Championship, the first of six they would win as he became the Greatest of All-Time.
Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. was born on August 3, 1977, in San Mateo, California. Growing up watching Joe Montana win four Super Bowls with the San Francisco 49ers, Brady went to Michigan, where he hardly garnered the nation's attention as he backed up Brian Griese on the 1997 National Championship team. He spent the next two seasons battling Drew Henson for the starting job in Ann Arbor while earning honorable mention on the All-Big-Ten team. Light regarded with an unimpressive combine performance, Tom Brady was not taken until the sixth round of the NFL Draft, 199th overall by the New England Patriots.
Tom Brady was the seventh quarterback to be taken in the 2000 NFL Draft, behind Chad Pennington of Marshall taken by the New York Jets 18th in the first round, Geovanni Carmazzi of Hofstra taken 65th in the third round by the San Francisco 49ers, Chris Redman of Louisville taken 75th in the third round by the Baltimore Ravens. The Pittsburgh Steelers took tee Martin from Tennesee with the 163rd pick in the fifth round. In the sixth round, the New Orleans Saints took Marc Bulger from West Virginia with the 168th pick, while the Cleveland Browns took Spregrom Wynn of Southwest Texas State with the 183rd pick.
Tom Brady showed early signs of greatness in the 2000 Hall of Fame Game, as he battled his hometown 49ers at Canton, significantly outshining Geovanni Caramazzi. Brady made just one appearance in 2000, completing a six-yard pass in three attempts for the Patriots. Drew Bledsoe was the face of the Patriots. He had been taken first overall in 1993 and helped them escape the dark years of Victor Kiam, leading New England to an appearance in Super Bowl XXXVI in 1996. After the sudden departure of Bill Parcells, Bledsoe was still seen as a top quarterback when he signed a ten-year extension with the Patriots worth $103 million in March of 2001.
Playing their final season in the barebones Foxboro Stadium, the Patriots, coached by Bill Bellichick, started the season with a 23-17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium. After the September 11th attacks postponed Week 2, the Patriots hosted the New York Jets in their home opener. Joe Andruzzi, whose two brothers were New York firefighters who survived the attacks, were honored before the game. Points were at a premium as the Jets beat the Patriots 10-3. Fate intervened in the third quarter when Drew Bledsoe was smashed on a bootleg by Mo Lewis. Bledsoe suffered a sheared blood vessel in his chest and was taken to the hospital, as Tom Brady, in his second appearance, completed 5-of-10 passes for 46 yards.
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Drew Bledsoe could not play as the Patriots got set to take on the Indianapolis Colts, who were off to a 2-0 start with coach Jim Mora leading the way. The Colts were favored to win the game by 11.5, as nobody expected Tom Brady to lead the Patriots to victory. Bill Belichick did not put Tom Brady in a position to carry the load, as the New England defense did a masterful job of stopping Peyton Manning. Antowain Smith gave the Patriots a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, with a four-yard run, which came on the heels of a 39-yard scamper that had a five-yard face mask penalty tacked on.
As the Patriots continued to shut down, Peyton Manning, Adam Vinatieri kicked a 47-yard field goal to extend New England's lead to 10-0 in the second quarter. Before the two-minute warning, Otis Smith had a 78-yard interception return to give the Patriots a 17-0 lead. The Patriots would add a second field goal by Vinatieri and led the game 20-0 at the half. The Patriots continued to dominate the game as Roman Phifer picked off Manning and set up another Adam Vinatieri field goal to extend the lead to 23-0.
The Colts finally got on the board with a ten-yard sneak by Peyton Manning as the Patriots went into the fourth quarter with a 23-7 lead. Tom Brady and the Patriots wasted no time answering the score, as Kevin Faulk capped a six-play, 63-yard drive with an eight-yard touchdown run to make it 30-7 in the fourth quarter. One minute later, Ty Law sealed the game with a 23-yard pick-six to make it 37-7 in favor of the Patriots. Each team would add a touchdown, as the Patriots served notice with a 44-13 win.
Tom Brady did not light the world on fire in his first starts, passing for 168 yards in his first win. Following a loss to the Miami Dolphins, Brady had his first touchdown pass two weeks later, as the Patriots beat the San Diego Chargers 29-26 in overtime. Drew Bledsoe would not start again for the Patriots as Tom Brady led New England to an 11-5 win to win the AFC East. They would go on to win Super Bowl XXXVI with Brady winning MVP honors.
The rest is history, as Tom Brady led the Patriots to six Super Bowl victories in nin Super Bowl appearances before leaving in 2019 and taking the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to victory in Super Bowl LV. Brady will be making his return to New England on Sunday night as the Patriots host the Buccaneers in one of the season's most anticipated games.