Rise to Fame
The 199th pick of the 2000 NFL Draft sat behind Drew Bledsoe and waited. A sixth-round afterthought dismissed for arm strength and foot speed, he got his opening in 2001 when Bledsoe took a hit that sheared a blood vessel. Brady stepped in and never gave the job back, leading New England to Super Bowl XXXVI over the heavily favored Rams. Six more championships followed, including a comeback from 28-3 down to the Falcons in Super Bowl LI. Being overlooked wasn't the obstacle. It was the whole point.
In the Spotlight
Retirement arrived in 2023, and he didn't really retire. The Fox Sports deal reportedly worth $375 million over 10 years put him in the broadcast booth alongside Kevin Burkhardt. He also bought a minority stake in the Las Vegas Raiders in 2024, which turned contentious when he was photographed in the Raiders coaches' booth during his broadcast season. The Raiders went 2-14 that year. Brady dismissed critics as 'paranoid and distrustful,' which is a sentence you only write if you've already won seven Super Bowls.
Side Notes
At 4 years old, he sat in the stands at Candlestick Park and watched Joe Montana throw 'The Catch' in the 1981 NFC Championship. The Montreal Expos drafted him as a catcher in 1995; he picked football at Michigan instead, arrived seventh on the depth chart, and hired a sports psychologist to stay sane. His college coach platooned him with Drew Henson, splitting the first half by quarters. He attended the same high school as Barry Bonds. None of that matters now, but it's the kind of backstory that makes the 199th pick thing feel inevitable.