Aug three, 2017

  • Mike ReissESPN Staff Writer

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    • Covered Patriots since 1997
    • Joined ESPN in 2009

This story first ran to celebrate Tom Brady'southward 40th birthday on Aug. three, 2017.

With New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady celebrating his 40th birthday on Thursday, we've tracked down a drove of confidants to tell their favorite behind-the-scenes stories about the QB.

The untold tales bridge a frustrated 4-yr-old golfer, a ruthless enforcer on the intramural basketball court, an unexpected beer-chugging wonder ... and everything in between.

Enjoy.

Bring upwardly Drew Henson at your own risk

Jay Flannelly, close friend from Michigan: "We played intramural basketball game together, and there was ane mean solar day the frat boys were giving Tom a hard fourth dimension virtually Drew Henson. Tom was taking information technology. I kept going over to him, asking, 'You OK?' So the game is near over, about a minute left, and we were up by virtually 30 points. He comes over to me and asks how many fouls he has. You're allowed four and Tom had two at the time. So he says to me, 'Beav, side by side time nosotros're inbounding the ball, I'g going to throw it to you and only sew together the court and don't look behind you. Just sprint.' So Tommy inbounds the ball to me, I run up the court and I hear this awful noise behind me. Tom set up a screen, like Charles Oakley, that took out one of the guys who had been on him all game about Drew Henson. It literally knocked the child into never-never land. I always talked to him later on that near how he was the quarterback enforcer; it would have been similar Wayne Gretzky chirapsia upwards a goon, or when Larry Bird went upwards to Bill Laimbeer."

'I'll throw it to whoever the f--- I want!'

Mike Vrabel, Patriots linebacker, 2001-08: "My indoctrination to the goal-line [criminal offence]: I had possibly caught a couple touchdowns and was feeling pretty good most myself, and we went to practise ane day and I broke free on a crossing route or something similar that. Then I start yelling, 'Tom! Tom! Tom!' and I'm waving my hands. Only he doesn't throw information technology to me. I come dorsum, and nosotros're in the huddle when he says, 'Mikey, if you ever wave your f---in' hands and enquire for the ball over again, I'll never throw information technology to y'all. I know who's open up. I'1000 the quarterback, I'll throw it to whoever the f--- I want!' That was the last time I ever called for the ball."

'Expert afternoon! Good afternoon!'

Rodney Harrison, Patriots safety, 2003-08: "This was when I commencement got to New England, nosotros had become friends and we were in the weight room. I show up around 6:30 in the morning time and he says to me, 'Good afternoon!' And then the adjacent twenty-four hours, I become the hint, and come in xv minutes earlier. Same affair: He says, 'Good afternoon!' Then the next solar day information technology's 5:45 in the morning, and he makes sure to say it twice: 'Skilful afternoon! Skillful afternoon!' And so I go far at 5:thirty the next day and earlier he could say annihilation to me, I looked at him and said, 'Human, I don't give a damn what you say, Tom, I'm not coming in earlier than 5:30!' We both laughed at that."

Brady's secret skill

Brian Hoyer, Patriots quarterback, 2009-eleven: "We played up at Buffalo and nosotros couldn't fly back into Boston considering the weather was then bad, and then we had to stay the dark in Rochester. We drove in that location, and nosotros all decided we'd get out to dinner together. Tom being who he was, he usually couldn't come to a team consequence like that. We might exist at Majuscule Grille and he is sneaking in the back door and and so people realize he'south there and he has to leave. But this was impromptu at Dinosaur Bar-B-Que in Rochester. The whole squad is in that location. And information technology turns into a beer-chugging contest. You have linemen, Julian Edelman, they all think they are going to win. So someone says, 'I heard Tom is really great at chugging a beer.' Nosotros don't commonly go to experience him similar this, but nosotros finally coax him into doing it. He does it, and let me tell y'all, yous couldn't have poured out the beer faster into a glass. It was unbelievable. And he slams the mug on the tabular array and puts both fists in the air. He walks away with a look on his face that said, 'Yous really idea yous were going to shell me on this?' The place went nuts."

'What is Tommy fifty-fifty thinking?'

Pat Kratus, roommate at Michigan: "In his sophomore and junior year, when he was second or third on the depth chart behind [Brian] Griese and [Scott] Dreisbach, he was yet studying film at 10:30, 11 at night. He was frustrated with not playing, and that's how he channeled it. If I beat out him in a game of H-O-R-South-E, he'd drop-kicking a basketball. There was a golf club or 2 that might accept gotten thrown in anger. Simply for his ain sanity, he would always turn those situations into hard work. Whenever you talked to him about the future, he was adamant: 'I'm going to be a starting quarterback in the NFL.' He e'er had confidence in his ain success. It wasn't braggadocios. That was just his plan from the word 'go.' He was the best human being in my nuptials, and after his starting time year, he was at my bachelor party in March 2001 along with a cousin of mine. My cousin is a very successful hedge-fund guy, and Tommy says to him, 'You know, I think I have a great shot at being quarterback this year.' He laid out this whole plan, talking about some of the things he had to do and what he had going for him. So my cousin comes upwards to me subsequently and says, 'Pat, there's [Drew] Bledsoe, there'south Michael Bishop. What is Tommy even thinking? Promise is not a strategy.' I but said, 'Tommy has worked really difficult at it. He always seems to find a style to do it. I bet yous he will be a starting quarterback when it's all said and done.'"

Bledsoe never had a take chances

Ty Law, Patriots cornerback, 2000-04: "When he finally got the job and was named the starter, our thought equally a defense force was, 'Just don't mess it up.' I remember u.s.a. hanging out and he said something to me that, to this twenty-four hour period, withal resonates with me. Nosotros had a good quarterback in Drew Bledsoe, and here's Tom maxim, 'He isn't getting this f---ing job back.' Equally a competitor, I was like, 'This is how you're supposed to think.' At the aforementioned time, I'm thinking to myself, 'This is the NFL! This is Drew Bledsoe -- a erstwhile No. ane overall pick with a big contract! OK, practiced luck with that.' Only Tom didn't look it at that way. Information technology was no disrespect to Drew. He was adamant to go far hard on [Bill] Belichick and Mr. Kraft to put Drew back on the field."

Sharing is overrated

Matt Cassel, Patriots quarterback, 2005-08: "He'due south never willing to give up a rep. I remember when I was in do, Josh [McDaniels] would exist like, 'All right Cassel, get in there. You're up.' And as before long equally he put me in, Tom would be like, 'No, I desire to go this i.' I remember having this chat with him. He said, 'Look, as y'all play this game, yous never desire to meet somebody else doing your job, because everybody is good in this league.'"

Do not try this at home

Bill Belichick, Patriots caput autobus, 2000-present: "When we played golf at Pebble Beach 2 years ago, on the sixth pigsty, it's a big cliff. He's literally standing out in that location on the ledge, trying to striking the ball. The caddie is holding him then he won't like tumble 300 feet to his death into the Pacific Ocean. It'southward a golf game ball. But I think that'south kind of the competitiveness of Tom. I'k sure there'due south a picture of it. I'thou thinking to myself, 'What the hell are you doing?'"

A virtually-death experience

Charlie Weis, Patriots offensive coordinator, 2000-04: "In 2002, I was going in for gastric bypass surgery and only a couple of people knew. Tommy was one. Belichick was ane. The plan was to get in on Friday, stay overnight for observation, and then get out the next solar day unless there were problems. Well, it's Saturday morn and Tommy comes to the hospital to meet me, and when he walked in, I was nearly dead. I was in intensive care, my blood pressure had dropped every bit low equally 50 over thirty, and I was in really, actually bad shape. We hadn't lived up in New England that long and didn't have whatever family that lived in New England, and my wife [Maura], who was stunned, is trying to effigy out how to take care of kids and be at the infirmary at the same time. Tommy basically stayed with my wife nearly of that weekend until reinforcements could arrive. He was there all day Saturday, with her belatedly Saturday night; so Sunday, I had flatlined a little scrap where I was actually dead and they brought me dorsum. What I afterwards learned was that Tommy and my wife had a serious conversation at the time, and he said, 'I wonder when he comes dorsum afterward this if he will yell at me whatsoever less?' And the way my wife told me the story, they both looked at each other and said, 'Naaaah. That volition never happen.' That was him trying to become my wife to not go in the tank at a fourth dimension when he'south a young kid and looking at a coach, who he is pretty close with, nigh expressionless. Those 2 days really inverse our family unit'due south relationship with Tommy. From that mean solar day on, he wasn't just the quarterback. There was a bond between Tommy and my wife and our family that had been created on nothing to do with football."

'The emotions start inundation'

Josh McDaniels, Patriots coaching assistant/QB coach/offensive coordinator, 2001-08, 2012-present: "When I accepted the Denver task at the cease of the 2008 flavour, I hadn't seen Tommy a whole lot over the course of the year because of his [injured] human knee and all the things that were going on with his rehab. So we're on our way to the aerodrome in Massachusetts to fly to Denver, and nosotros nevertheless hadn't connected at that point. I had tried to get him, but he might have been out of the country. He calls while nosotros're on the style to the drome, and as would be typical of him, he talks about how he was going to miss our relationship, how happy he was for our family unit, and so he asks to speak to [my wife,] Laura. Laura is strong, independent and non overly emotional, but as she's listening to him, the emotions start overflowing. She had been fine up until that moment. He told her how much he loves our family, how excited he was for u.s.a., how he'd exist rooting for united states of america every game except for when playing the states. Tommy didn't even accept to call, he had been going through everything with his knee. It was simply really representative, to me, the fact that I've always thought he was a better human being than he is a football histrion."

Anyone missing some tires?

Kevin Faulk, Patriots running dorsum, 2000-11: "Tom was ever businesslike, simply he as well liked to have fun. Then one twenty-four hour period, we all walk into the locker room and three tires from Matt Cassel's car are all at his locker. Nobody knows where the fourth tire is, just Cassel'due south automobile, in the parking lot, is on blocks. They were playing pranks on each other, it was Tom who did it, and Cassel sort of looked effectually and said, 'What tin can I practice, human?' Well, a couple of offensive linemen decided that they wanted to assist. They wanted to leave Mr. Brady a piffling care for for when he was going home from do. So Brady gets to his car and what does he find: Information technology is filled with a agglomeration of packing peanuts."

'Hey, my name is Tom Brady'

Sebastian Vollmer, Patriots offensive tackle, 2009-16: "I'chiliad always impressed, because when you lot walk into that locker room, everyone knows who Tom Brady is. Only he introduces himself to every rookie: 'Hey, my name is Tom Brady. I play quarterback.' Information technology'south not like, 'I'm the guy.' He's not big-headed. Just humble from the perspective of, 'I don't expect yous to know me, I am going to bear witness to yous I can play.'"

Welcome to the squad, rook

Matthew Slater, Patriots special-teams helm, 2008-nowadays: "I call back when I first got drafted here, kind of feeling out of place, not knowing who I was on the squad, what my part was going to exist. Just Tom came up to me, knew my name, kind of knew my story -- the style my career went at UCLA. It merely blew me away that this guy, with all he has accomplished, would have the time to get to know a little scrap most a youngster. I think that really speaks to his character and the way he carries himself and the type of human being he is. I'g really appreciative of that."

Everyone should take a TAG guy

Rob Ninkovich, Patriots defensive terminate/linebacker, 2009-16: "One fourth dimension, nosotros were in a captains' coming together and he had a cool TAG [Heuer] picket on. So I went upward to him and said, 'That's pretty sweet. Do you have a guy that I can talk to?' He has that knowing expect on his face and says with a smile, 'Do I take a guy?' I told him I'grand sure he had the owner, the president of the company, whatever. Fast-forward a couple days and he handed me a make-new box. It was exactly the watch I had said was awesome. He didn't have to do that. But that's just the manner he is."

'I want to hit the brawl hard, Dad'

Tom Brady Sr., dad: "When Tommy was 4 years sometime, we played in our first father/son golf game tournament. This particular Sunday when we got to the course, all he was really interested in was drinking milkshakes, driving the cart and hitting the golf brawl -- ofttimes. In the course of this alternate-shot tournament, I would hit the ball, then he would hit the ball, then I would hit the brawl. However, he wanted to exist the but 1 to hit the ball. On the 13th hole, I sank a long putt and he started whining, then crying, because and then he couldn't hit his shot. On the next pigsty, I rolled a putt up to within 2 inches of the cup. He then got up with his putter and hitting the brawl well-nigh lx feet abroad while taking a big divot out of the dark-green. I asked him why he didn't just tap the ball into the hole, and he said he just wanted to hit the ball difficult. Needless to say, we came in dead last in the tournament. Still, at the terminate of information technology, he nevertheless got his milkshake."

Mastering the five dots

John Kirby, Junipero Serra High School teammate, 1994: "People have talked about his speed and how he isn't the fastest guy, but I ever thought he was pretty fast back in the day. We did something called the five-dot drill. It looks similar the five that y'all would see when rolling die. Y'all do all these different footwork things, dorsum and along, and the start fourth dimension we did it, Tommy's fourth dimension wasn't the greatest. You know the fashion he faces adversity; he doesn't allow annihilation stand in his manner. And then what does he practise? He spray-paints those dots on his garage floor so he could do it at dwelling. His fourth dimension was greatly improved past the end of the summer."

Good is the enemy of perfect

Matt Cassel, Patriots quarterback, 2005-08: "One day in exercise, I forgot to bring the guy in move because I got locked and knew I was throwing to the other side based on pre-snap coverage. Simply I forgot the motion. And Brady immediately comes upwardly to me right later on and goes, 'Cassel, you can't miss that movement.' I was like, 'Yeah, merely I completed the ball.' He's like, 'Yeah, simply how the hell are you going to yell at them to be answerable when they come across that you messed up that motion?' Yous have to be perfect at this position."

Your money is no skillful hither

Wes Welker, Patriots wide receiver, 2007-12: "We were flying during our bye week to L.A. to become worked on equally nosotros got ready for the playoffs. We were playing a game with dice and you try to get all your pawns to the other side, and I'chiliad kind of beating him the first couple games. He'southward down about $200. I'm talking trash and yous could just see his frustration growing. He and so takes the board game and throws it against the back of the airplane. I'm like, 'Dude, are y'all serious right now?' We go on on playing, and of form he ends up getting upwardly on me $300. Of a sudden, he'due south in the happiest, best mood ever. I go to pay him and he didn't even have information technology. He just wanted to win. He had the biggest smile on his face."

'He has an IBM'

Nib O'Brien, Patriots QBs coach/offensive coordinator, 2007-eleven: "My favorite story about him has to do with his retentiveness. I don't remember the verbal time of the year, but we were playing Buffalo, I think it was 2009. We're in a meeting and we're watching Buffalo's outset- and second-downward tape. I'chiliad talking to them about what the Bills' defensive coordinator was doing, and [Brady] basically knew who the coordinator was considering he had faced him earlier in his career, about five to vi years prior. Then he says to me in this meeting, 'I think nosotros ran this play against this scheme called Crunch Stock in 2004.' I said, 'You retrieve that specific play?' He said, 'Aye, I remember it against this specific coverage, which this coordinator loves to play. Information technology was on the right hash, going abroad from the lighthouse, and we hitting Troy Brown for a big gain on the crossing pattern.' I said, 'There is no way yous remember that play like that!' He challenged me to pull it up. We have all the games on the computer system, and nosotros find that game and there's the play: on the right hash, second-and-less-than-five, going away from the lighthouse and he hits Troy Brown on a crossing pattern. Think about all the plays he had between that day and the twenty-four hours we were talking. Apart from his talent and competitiveness, I always tell people that's what sets him apart. He has an IBM. He remembers information technology."

Lamentable, too slow

Jacoby Brissett, Patriots quarterback, 2016-present: "When I first got here, I think he kind of set the tone in our room in terms of how competitive we are. Josh [McDaniels] is request me a question, information technology was like i of my first days here. So I'm thinking virtually what to say, and Tom only answers. In my head, I'thousand similar, 'What are you doing?' And then he's like, 'You just accept to be faster in this room.' That's when I kind of got an opening to [his arroyo], and it's been the aforementioned way ever since."

Quite the fastball

John Kirby, Junipero Serra High Schoolhouse teammate, 1994: "Senior year in high school, I recollect running a 17-yard curl, back to 15. I swear to god, equally soon as I planted my right foot, I could already hear it coming -- like a missile in the air. That's by far my nearly favorite Tom Brady story of all time. You knew the ball was coming because you lot could hear it."

Ty's Discount Furniture ... And Dwelling house

Ty Police force, Patriots cornerback, 2000-04: "I think back to our offset Super Basin season [2001], and I had a different relationship with Tom, peculiarly when he was younger. We had the Michigan connection, and I sold him my house for a major, major f---ing discount! I left everything -- all the furniture, the TVs -- it was basically, 'Only move in your bags.' The guy wasn't making any money, and then I sold information technology to him for probably $100,000-something less than if I had put it on the market. He was such a difficult worker and information technology was like, 'This is the to the lowest degree I tin can practice.'"

When all else fails, 'panic cry'

Sebastian Vollmer, Patriots offensive tackle, 2009-16: "We're playing Miami and I got vanquish clean by the defensive finish. I'm on the right side, essentially turning around, and Tom is looking to the left. The defensive end has a straight shot at him and I know Tom doesn't see him. So I just yell out one loud, 'Toooommmmm!' He doesn't even look, steps upwards at-home as always and delivers the ball for a completion. Then he looks in my direction, points his finger and says, 'I heard that.' I'm thinking to myself, 'What incredible awareness he has.' Never rattled. I'chiliad the ane who screwed up and he's thanking me for yelling his name. It was like a panic cry."

The silent treatment

Rodney Harrison, Patriots safety, 2003-08: "When we were downwards in the Super Bowl at Houston [in 2004], it was practice and it was a competitive one. The defense force had its mode with Tom that day -- knocking downwardly balls, forcing incomplete passes -- and we were all pumped up. Then I stepped in forepart and picked Tom off, running downward the field, loftier-stepping, talking trash. When I come back, he started chasing me, throwing footballs at me, yelling obscenities at me. Information technology was unbelievable. Here we are at the Super Bowl, most to play the biggest game of our lives, and this dude is mad -- and so wouldn't talk to me for a twenty-four hour period and a half -- because I picked him off."

Illustrations by Ward Sutton