Tom Brady collected the third Super Bowl MVP trophy of his incredible career on Monday morning, along with the keys to a new Chevrolet truck, as he was recognised for his role in a thrilling 28-24 win over Seattle. The NFL commissioner, Rodger Goodell, congratulated the quarterback on matching yet another record set by Brady’s childhood idol, Joe Montana, but the MVP was eager to deflect the praise onto his New England team-mates.
In particular, he singled out Malcolm Butler, whose end zone interception sealed the Patriots’ victory. The cornerback, an undrafted rookie out of West Alabama, had never picked off a pass in the first 13 games of his professional career, but Brady said that his performances in practice made it clear that it could only be a matter of time.
“You know, he made a mark in the rookie [minicamp] – in [offseason training],” said Brady. “We don’t put numbers on our jerseys; for what reason, I don’t know. I’m not sure … But this one player just kept making plays and I kept going, ‘Who is that? Who’s that guy running down balls?’ He had great quickness, great speed, great jumping ability, played the ball so well, intercepting passes all season long practicing on the scout team, and got some opportunities as the season went along to play on defense.
“It all leads to that particular moment. You put a lot of hard work in over the course of the season and Malcolm did that. To recognize a formation, a play, put it all together in your mind as a young player, it was the perfect play at the perfect time. Obviously, none of us will ever forget that play. I’m just proud of him, proud of our team, and it’s a great victory.”
Brady was critical of his own performance, saying that he had made some “stupid throws to really kind of get our team in a hole”. But he insisted that his confidence had never been shaken, right up until the moment when Seattle’s Jermaine Kearse made an improbable catch at the New England five-yard line with little over a minute left in the game.
Butler was on the coverage for that play, too, and had appeared to break up the pass, only for it to fall right on top of a prone Kearse. It was a moment reminiscent of the catch that David Tyree had made for the New York Giants on their game-winning drive against the Patriots at Super Bowl XLII. The Seahawks, down by four, reached the one-yard line on the next play.
“I saw Malcolm make a great play when he tipped it,” said Brady. “I turned my head and then the guy [Kearse] got up and started running and I said, ‘What happened?’ I saw the review and couldn’t believe it. I felt like we were going to win the whole game, and then they made that catch and then I had a little bit of doubt. But then we made a great play.
“We’ve been on the other end of some great catches and not been able to finish it out, and this time we made the play. So it was no fight. Nobody, obviously, lost confidence on defense. It was a lot of fight that the team had. It took a 60-minute game, it took 99 yards on the football field to hold them. It’s a great feeling.”
Brady refused to be drawn on the matter of his own personal legacy. Many people already considered him to be the greatest quarterback to play the game, and that number will only have increased after he joined Montana and Terry Bradshaw as the only players at their position ever to win four Super Bowls. But even as his great career rival, Peyton Manning, contemplates retirement, Brady served notice that he intends to carry on playing – and winning titles – for a while yet.
“I’ve never thought much about that,” he said when asked about his place in history. “I am still kind of in the midst of my career. I just love the game. I love playing. I love representing our team. All the guys work really hard. It’s a big commitment that a lot of players make to play this game and it’s a lot of sacrifices and a lot of support from a lot of people that love you and support you.
“So, probably the most gratifying thing is to win the game and then to celebrate with your team-mates and your loved ones. We’ve been on the other end of this two times in the last seven years, being ahead late in the game with the chance to win it, and not closing it out. I’m glad we had the opportunity to do it.”
By his own confession short of sleep after last night’s celebrations, Brady was bleary-eyed as he spoke, and so was Bill Belichick when he stepped up to speak to the press immediately afterward. “How are you all doing?” asked the Patriots head coach as he approached the podium. “Better than I am, I’m sure.”
But a hangover could not prevent him from waxing lyrical about Brady. “It’s been a great privilege to coach Tom for the last 15 years, 14 years as starting quarterback,” said Belichick. “We have a great relationship. We meet on a regular basis weekly several times. I can’t think of a more deserving player than Tom to be the recipient of the accolades that he has this week, and particularly last night and today here.
“He’s our leader. He competes as well as any player I’ve ever coached. He’s well-prepared. He has great poise and great presence. He may not always be perfect, as it is for any of us. We all have our moments, but Tom, like many other players on our team, is the guy that fights to the end and competes until the end. There’s no player I respect more for that than Tom.”
