Picture of Tom Brady
The quarterback for the New England Patriots
Tom Brady is 32 years old. He has been
the quarter back for the New England Patriots since 2000. He had led
the Patriots to three super bowl wins.
Growing up
As a quarterback
Personal life
Growing up:
Tom Brady was born on August 3, 1977 in San Mateo, an affluent California city of more than 90,000 residents located 30 minutes south of San Francisco. (Click here for a complete listing of today's sports birthdays.) His parents, Tom Sr. and Galynn, were big sports fans. They raised their four children to share their passion. Tom’s three older sisters—Maureen, Julie, and Nancy—were all athletic. He followed in their footsteps.
Tom was crazy about the 49ers. During his childhodd, his parents took him to plenty of game at Candlestick Park. One of his earliest childhood memories was the 1981 NFC Championship Game between the Niners and Dallas Cowboys. The three-year-old cried for the entire first half because his mom and dad refused to buy him an oversized foam “#1” hand.
In the second half, as the drama increased and the energy began to build, Tom began paying attention to the action on the field. He did not understand everything that was happening, but he knew his favorite player, Joe Montana, was up to something special. When Montana found Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone to pull off an incredible comeback, the stadium exploded. That play sent San Francisco to its first Super Bowl—and permanently shifted the balance of power in pro football. It also got Tom thinking it would be pretty cool to be a pro quarterback some day.
The early years of Tom’s sports career did not hold much promise of attaining such a lofty goal. He was not particularly big or strong or coordinated. In fact, Tom was undistinguished even among the other boys on his block. What he had going for him was a competitive nature and an innate understanding of how to improve.
Tom would find the fastest kid around and challenge him to a foot race. Not gifted with much natural speed, he was blown away time and again. Yet Tom never gave up, analyzing his performance after each loss and thinking of things he could do to get better. Finally, he began beating the other boys. Looking back, he remembers feeling like the tortoise who triumphed over the hare.
Tom's blend of intelligence and a never-say-die attitude served him well in youth sports. He flourished at positions where those qualities mattered most, most notably as a baseball catcher. He could hit, run, throw, and handle pitchers as well as anyone around. Though a football career still occupied his thoughts, he did not play in an organized league until his freshman year at Junipero Serra High School, an all-boys Catholic school in San Mateo that had produced its fair share of superstar athletes, including Lynn Swann and Barry Bonds.
Tom made the JV as a backup quarterback for the Padres, and then ascended to the first-string role after an injury felled the starter. By his junior year, he was starring on the varsity for Serra in two sports, football and baseball. Known for his incredible work ethic, Tom was a coach’s dream. Dissatisfied with the football squad ’s training regimen, he devised his own. Included was a jump rope routine that quickly became a regular part of team workouts. Over the summers, only the most dedicated teammates joined Tom in his torturous training program.
By his senior season, Tom was seeing the fruits of his hard work. He gained national attention in 1994 as a quarterback, including All-America recognition by both Blue Chip Illustrated and Prep Football Report. He ended his prep career with 3,702 yards passing and 31 touchdowns. Tom was also honored as an All-State and All-Far West performer.
He was no slouch on the baseball diamond, either. In the 1995 draft, the Montreal Expos picked him in the 18th round.
By that time, Tom had decided his future lay in football. It was a smart choice. Two of the players drafted ahead of him by the Expos—Michael Barrett and Brian Schneider—would eventually become the team’s catching tandem.
Tom was a sought-after football prospect who had his choice of schools from coast to coast. Though many colleges closer to home were interested in him, he accepted a scholarship from the University of Michigan.
As a quarterback:
Personal Life:
Brady dated actress Bridget Moynahan from 2003-2006. The pair broke up late in 2006, and Brady was dating model Gisele Bündchen in February of 2007 when Moynahan announced she was three months pregnant with Brady's child. The child, a boy named John Edward Thomas Moynahan, was born on 22 August 2007; Bündchen and Brady were married 26 February 2009.
Here is a complete biography on Tom Brady:
Growing up
As a quarterback
Personal life
Growing up:
Tom Brady was born on August 3, 1977 in San Mateo, an affluent California city of more than 90,000 residents located 30 minutes south of San Francisco. (Click here for a complete listing of today's sports birthdays.) His parents, Tom Sr. and Galynn, were big sports fans. They raised their four children to share their passion. Tom’s three older sisters—Maureen, Julie, and Nancy—were all athletic. He followed in their footsteps.
Tom was crazy about the 49ers. During his childhodd, his parents took him to plenty of game at Candlestick Park. One of his earliest childhood memories was the 1981 NFC Championship Game between the Niners and Dallas Cowboys. The three-year-old cried for the entire first half because his mom and dad refused to buy him an oversized foam “#1” hand.
In the second half, as the drama increased and the energy began to build, Tom began paying attention to the action on the field. He did not understand everything that was happening, but he knew his favorite player, Joe Montana, was up to something special. When Montana found Dwight Clark in the back of the end zone to pull off an incredible comeback, the stadium exploded. That play sent San Francisco to its first Super Bowl—and permanently shifted the balance of power in pro football. It also got Tom thinking it would be pretty cool to be a pro quarterback some day.
The early years of Tom’s sports career did not hold much promise of attaining such a lofty goal. He was not particularly big or strong or coordinated. In fact, Tom was undistinguished even among the other boys on his block. What he had going for him was a competitive nature and an innate understanding of how to improve.
Tom would find the fastest kid around and challenge him to a foot race. Not gifted with much natural speed, he was blown away time and again. Yet Tom never gave up, analyzing his performance after each loss and thinking of things he could do to get better. Finally, he began beating the other boys. Looking back, he remembers feeling like the tortoise who triumphed over the hare.
Tom's blend of intelligence and a never-say-die attitude served him well in youth sports. He flourished at positions where those qualities mattered most, most notably as a baseball catcher. He could hit, run, throw, and handle pitchers as well as anyone around. Though a football career still occupied his thoughts, he did not play in an organized league until his freshman year at Junipero Serra High School, an all-boys Catholic school in San Mateo that had produced its fair share of superstar athletes, including Lynn Swann and Barry Bonds.
Tom made the JV as a backup quarterback for the Padres, and then ascended to the first-string role after an injury felled the starter. By his junior year, he was starring on the varsity for Serra in two sports, football and baseball. Known for his incredible work ethic, Tom was a coach’s dream. Dissatisfied with the football squad ’s training regimen, he devised his own. Included was a jump rope routine that quickly became a regular part of team workouts. Over the summers, only the most dedicated teammates joined Tom in his torturous training program.
By his senior season, Tom was seeing the fruits of his hard work. He gained national attention in 1994 as a quarterback, including All-America recognition by both Blue Chip Illustrated and Prep Football Report. He ended his prep career with 3,702 yards passing and 31 touchdowns. Tom was also honored as an All-State and All-Far West performer.
He was no slouch on the baseball diamond, either. In the 1995 draft, the Montreal Expos picked him in the 18th round.
By that time, Tom had decided his future lay in football. It was a smart choice. Two of the players drafted ahead of him by the Expos—Michael Barrett and Brian Schneider—would eventually become the team’s catching tandem.
Tom was a sought-after football prospect who had his choice of schools from coast to coast. Though many colleges closer to home were interested in him, he accepted a scholarship from the University of Michigan.
As a quarterback:
- Brady enters 2009 with a record of 101-27 (.789) in regular-season and playoff games. It is the best record of any NFL quarterback in the Super Bowl Era (since 1966) with at least 100 starts.
- Brady enters 2009 with a 14-3 (.824) playoff record, the second best in NFL history behind Bart Starr (9-1, .900).
- His 14 total playoff wins are tied for the second most in NFL history behind Joe Montana (16).
- In addition to the NFL records Brady set in 2007, he also set Patriots franchise records for highest completion percentage in a season (68.9 percent), most passing yards in a season (4,806), highest passer rating in a season (117.2), highest passer rating in a game (158.3 on Oct. 21, 2007), lowest interception percentage in a season (1.4 percent) and most touchdown passes in a game (6 on Oct. 21, 2007).
- Brady and receiver Randy Moss set an NFL single-season record in 2007 for most touchdown passes between a passer and a receiver (23), with Moss's 23 touchdown catches also setting a league record.
- Brady is the only quarterback in NFL history to start and win three Super Bowls before his 28th birthday, having quarterbacked the Patriots to victories in Super Bowl XXXVI when he was 24 years old, Super Bowl XXXVIII (26) and Super Bowl XXXIX (27).
- Brady has orchestrated 28 game-winning drives to break a tie or take the lead in the fourth quarter or overtime. Six of his game-winning efforts have come in the postseason, where he has played in 17 games.
- Brady led a game-winning drive to break a tie or take the lead in
the fourth quarter of each of the Patriots' three Super Bowl victories,
becoming the only quarterback in NFL history to lead three such
game-winning drives in the Super Bowl..
- Brady tied an NFL record in 2005 by distributing his 26 touchdown passes to 12 different players. The only other NFL player to accomplish the feat was Brad Johnson in 2003.
- Brady set a career high in 2004 with a 92.6 passer rating, which was then the second highest rating in Patriots history among players with at least 150 attempts (Tony Eason, 93.4 in 1984).
- Brady owns the Super Bowl record for pass completions in a game, connecting on 32 passes in Super Bowl XXXVIII.
- Brady won his first 10 playoff games, setting an NFL record for the most consecutive playoff wins.
- Brady was voted an offensive captain by his teammates in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008.
- Brady completed a streak of throwing for at least one touchdown in 15 straight games, including playoffs (12/14/03 — 11/22/04), recording the longest such streak in Patriots history.
- Brady led the NFL with 28 touchdown passes in 2002 and became the first Patriot to lead the league in touchdown passes since Steve Grogan shared the lead with Cleveland's Brian Sipe (28) in 1979.
- Brady threw at least two touchdown passes in each of the first five games of the 2002 season, the first Patriot to accomplish that feat and the first Patriot to throw for at least two touchdowns in five straight games in a single season since Butch Songin (10/23/60—11/18/60).
- Brady (24 years, 184 days old) was voted MVP of Super Bowl XXXVI and was the third-youngest player to earn the honor (Marcus Allen, 23 years and 301 days at Super Bowl XVIII and Lynn Swann, 23 years, 316 days at Super Bowl X).
- Brady was voted to the 2001 Pro Bowl and became just the second Patriots quarterback to receive the honor (Drew Bledsoe, 1994, 1996 and 1997). He also became just the fifth quarterback since 1970 to be voted to the Pro Bowl in his first year as a starter, joining Dan Marino (1983), Brett Favre (1992), Kurt Warner (1999) and Daunte Culpepper (2000).
- Brady threw for 53 yards on the Patriots' game-winning drive in Super Bowl XXXVI, completing five of his eight passes. Two of his pass attempts were spiked to kill the game clock. With just 1:21 remaining, he moved the Patriots into field goal position without the benefit of timeouts.
- Brady completed over 70 percent of his passes in four consecutive games during the 2001 season and joined an exclusive club of quarterbacks who accomplished the feat. He joined Joe Montana (8 games, 1989), Troy Aikman (4, 1995), Steve Young (4, 1993) and Sammy Baugh (4, 1945).
- Brady completed the first 162 passes of his career without an interception. It was the longest streak to start a career in NFL history and ranks third for most attempts without an interception in Patriots franchise history.
Personal Life:
Brady dated actress Bridget Moynahan from 2003-2006. The pair broke up late in 2006, and Brady was dating model Gisele Bündchen in February of 2007 when Moynahan announced she was three months pregnant with Brady's child. The child, a boy named John Edward Thomas Moynahan, was born on 22 August 2007; Bündchen and Brady were married 26 February 2009.