It Was 19 Years Ago Today That The Patriots Drafted Tom Brady In Sixth Round
BOSTON (CBS) -- It was 19 years ago today that the Patriots drafted Tom Brady. It was kind of a big moment for the New England franchise, though no one really knew it at the time.
The Patriots were unaware of it that Sunday afternoon in 2000, but they had just used the 199th overall pick on the GOAT, changing the franchise forever.
The selection was a depth pick at the time, with Drew Bledsoe firmly in place as the franchise's quarterback. Little did the Patriots know that Brady would rise from the fourth quarterback on their depth chart to become a six-time Super Bowl champ and the greatest quarterback to ever play the game.
The Patriots remembered Brady's draft day anniversary with a video that will certainly get Patriots fans fired up, even with the new season still five months away.
Brady, now a Twitter champion himself, also chimed in on social media:
19 years ago today the @patriots took a chance on the guy in this photo: Me (199) ????. Thank you to EVERYONE who's helped me to prove them right!
— Tom Brady (@TomBrady) April 16, 2019
Also, did they stop taking these photos after mine?? ???????? pic.twitter.com/qxBoCc0F1H
We all know the story by now. There were six other quarterbacks drafted ahead of Brady in the 2000 NFL Draft, and none of them amounted to much in the NFL. While Brady is the owner of six Super Bowl rings, none of the "Brady Six" -- as they're commonly referred to as -- won a Super Bowl during their playing days. Chad Pennington (drafted 18th overall by the New York Jets), Giovanni Carmazzi (65th overall, San Francisco), Chris Redman (75th overall, Baltimore), Tee Martin (163rd overall, Pittsburgh), Marc Bulger (168th overall, New Orleans) and Spergon Wynn (183rd overall, Cleveland) were all off the board before Brady, decisions that have no doubt led to some sleepless nights for those in charge of their respective franchises at the time.
Round 6, Pick 199: The @Patriots select @TomBrady, QB, Michigan.
— NFL Throwback (@nflthrowback) April 16, 2019
19 years ago today. #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/yVkDjF7DNE
In their defense, the Patriots also passed on Brady a handful of times in 2000. And as you can see in the video the Patriots tweeted out Tuesday, he didn't really look like an NFL quarterback coming out of Michigan (he very clearly did not have any sort of method to his training or wild diet at that point in his life). But it was watching those other QBs get drafted ahead of him that gave Brady a mighty chip on his shoulder, one that he's carried throughout his Hall of Fame career. The three-time NFL MVP and four-time Super Bowl MVP continues to use it as motivation, even into his 40s.
Brady will be back with the Patriots in 2019 as he and the team go for their unprecedented seventh Lombardi Trophy. Not too shabby for a sixth-round pick.