Where Tom Brady stands in record books upon retirement

BOSTON -- Tom Brady is retiring. This time, it looks like it's going to stick.

Of course, Brady had a change of heart last year, but there was a lot going on back then. This time, in a simple 53-second video on social media, Brady looked and sounded like a man who's emotionally moving on from the game of football.

That is, naturally, to be expected of a person who's set to turn 46 years old before the 2023 season kicks off. Expecting a player of that age to play the most violent, unforgiving sport on earth was always a bit unrealistic. Yet Brady's spent the last two-plus decades accomplish that which seemed impossible, so a return for a 24th season always seemed possible.

For now, though, it's all over. And while the 2022 season appeared to have largely been a joyless experience for Brady, the quarterback did put up some hefty numbers in his final NFL season. With just under 4,700 passing yards along with 25 touchdowns in the regular season along with 351 more yards and two touchdowns in the playoffs, Brady added to the gap between him and everybody else in just about every statistical category in existence.

And while there will be thousands upon thousands of words written to memorialize the greatest career any football player has ever had, here first is a quick look at Brady's statistical place in the game.

Completions, all time
1. Tom Brady, 7,753
2. Drew Brees, 7,142
3. Brett Favre, 6,300
4. Peyton Manning, 6,125
5. Matt Ryan, 5,551

Passing yards, all time
1. Tom Brady, 89, 214
2. Drew Brees, 80, 358
3. Peyton Manning, 71,940
4. Brett Favre, 71,838
5. Ben Roethlisbger, 64,088

Passing touchdowns, all time
1. Tom Brady, 649
2. Drew Brees, 571
3. Peyton Manning, 539
4. Brett Favre, 508
5. Aaron Rodgers, 475

Completions, playoffs, all time
1. Tom Brady, 1,200
2. Peyton Manning, 649
3. Aaron Rodgers, 501
4. Ben Roethlisberger, 498
5. Drew Brees, 481
5. Brett Favre, 481

Passing yards, playoffs, all time
1. Tom Brady, 13,400
2. Peyton Manning, 7,339
3. Ben Roethlisberger, 5,972
4. Aaron Rodgers, 5,894
5. Brett Favre, 5,855

Passing touchdowns, playoffs, all time
1. Tom Brady, 88
2. Joe Montana, 45
2. Aaron Rodgers, 45
4. Brett Favre, 44
5. Peyton Manning, 40

Of course, Brady is known more for winning than he is for compiling stats, and he's the all-time leader in regular-season wins (251), postseason wins (35), and Super Bowl wins (7).