Tom Brady Reacts To His Foxboro Return & Win Over The Patriots

FOXBORO, MA — Buccaneers Quarterback Tom Brady spoke to the media following his team’s 19-17 win over the New England Patriots Tom Brady mentioned he’ll be a part of the New England community after he retires.

Full Postgame Transcript:

Q: What were your thoughts?

TB: Obviously very tough game. Came down just a couple plays. Glad we were able to win, and sorry to keep you guys waiting. Wasn’t anticipating this.

Q: Were you surprised or did you think you would get – you got a few jeers while you were playing, but when you came out for warmups people went nuts.

TB: It was awesome.

Q: People were chanting. Did that surprise you?

TB: I’m not surprised. I tried not to predict what was going to happen and how I would feel. Had a few emotional in the moments this week just thinking about the people that have really meant so much to me in my life and that are a part of this community. Just very grateful for an amazing time here. Like I said, my football journey took me somewhere else, but I’m really enjoying that, and great to get a win. 3-1, I know to make it about the game, but 3-1 against a really good football team tonight is what we wanted to get done.

Q: Can you talk about your interaction with Bill Belichick on the field and in the locker room after the game?

TB: Yeah, I mean, all those are personal. We got a personal relationship, you know, for 20-plus years. He drafted me here. We’ve had a lot of personal conversations that should remain that way and are very private.

And I would say so much is made of our relationship. You know, as I said earlier this week, from a player’s standpoint you just expect the coach to give you everything he’s got, and I’m sure as a player that’s what he was hoping from me. But nothing is really accurate that I ever see. It’s all kind of – definitely doesn’t come from my personal feelings or beliefs. I got a lot of respect for him as a coach and obviously a lot of respect for this organization and all the different people here that try to make it successful.

Q: Were you surprised to see him after the game?

TB: No, we just – no, we just said we’ll catch up after the game for a little bit.

Q: Going up against some of these guys in practice, is there a different feel when you do it in a game?

TB: I mean, doesn’t count in practice, so nothing matters if you get touchdowns or interceptions. It all counts out here. It was a tough, hard-fought game. It was very typical Patriot type weather. Very tough to come into the environment. I thought the fans did a great job. That little – what do they call that horn, that foghorn or whatever? That thing is loud as can be. You don’t think about it much when the defense is on the field. I just happened to be on the field when that thing was going off. It’s a great home field advantage. The fans were amazing. Just happy for our team personally just for us to get a win in a really tough environment. It’s tough to do in the NFL.

Q: When you ran out of the tunnel and you do your 100-yard run that you’ve done so many times and you ended in the opposite end zone, what was the first thought there?

TB: I couldn’t run through the normal tunnel, so, yeah, just happened to be the opposite way tonight. Just a lot of emotions. It was a very emotional week. Again, these guys are like my brothers, you know what I mean?

There are two groups of people, all my Bucs teammates that I love and I’m going to battle with every week, and then there is another group of guys that I see, and those are my friends that I been with for a long time. Matt Slater and Kyle Van Noy and Dont’a Hightower and John and Devin [McCourty] and David Andrews and Hoyer. There is a whole crew. Josh [McDaniels]. These are the people that I’ve shared my life with. Very grateful for everything they’ve kind of contributed to my life. Very blessed.

Q: I know you said winning means more to you, but being able to get the NFL passing record, what did that mean?

TB: Yep. I just think it’s amazing statistic in that so many people can share in it with me. Quarterback doesn’t throw and catch. Quarterback can just throw it. It’s yards. Passing yards have to be caught, so I just hope that everybody who caught passes from me over the years just had a little smile on their face tonight knowing they contributed to a very cool record. There are some people that have kind of preceded it by name, Drew Brees who I look up to, hell of a guy. Peyton Manning who is one of my all-time favorites. Brett Favre, Dan Marino.

But obviously my teammates who caught all these passes over the years, mean an awful lot to me.

Q: How did you think the Patriots defended you tonight?

TB: They did a good job. They did a good job. It was a tough game. Hard-fought game. We ran the ball well. Moved it. We just didn’t get it in the red zone. Had a few costly drive-killing kind of mistakes that limited us getting – really scoring touchdowns would’ve been a lot different. But just proud of our team. Tough weather. You know, just very typical day. We had to grind it out.

Q: Is that what you expected from Belichick?

TB: They did a good job. Yeah, they did a good job. They got a good team, good cover players. They got a good rush. Got some good hits on me tonight, so I’ll be a little sore tomorrow.

Q: I know you haven’t seen much of Mac Jones, what are your impressions?

TB: He did a great job. I think that offense does a great job. Josh really dialed up some good plays, too. They kind of hit everything. I saw them coming in couple reverse passes and throwback. They did a good job.

But in the end it always comes down to a couple plays. Happy we made them. Ryan [Succop] made a huge kick. He made a few big ones last year for us. I know Nick [Folk] got a good hit on that one there at the end. It just was a little bit left.

Q: If there was your last game in Gillette Stadium, how do you put into words what this place meant to you, and is it a little sweeter for you to pull out a win?

TB: It’s been a great stadium for me for a long time. I don’t know what the future holds. Obviously could be an opportunity to come back here. We’ll see. I feel like I’ll always be a part of this community. I’ll be up here quite a bit when it’s all said and done. When I retire I’m sure there will be a lot of time for – you know, I have a lot of friends up here and it’s a great place. My kids were born on Beacon Street in the city. It’s been an amazing place for me, it still is. I obviously see a lot of familiar friendly faces, and great to see you guys, too.

Q:You talked about preparation and we emotional it was this week. For everything that you expected and then as it turned out tonight, what was the difference in how you had to kind of lock in this week and how it all turned out?

TB: I feel good that we won. I feel good that we won. I think that – again I didn’t try to – it was just some emotional moments thinking about coming up here and playing. Again, I know why it’s tough to come in here and win a game all these years. This team does a great job. They make you earn it. They’re not going to win every game, but it’s a tough football environment. The crowd is into it. I’m just really happy we got a win.

Q: Is that the ball from the record?

TB: Yep. That one is for me.

Q: How would you describe your emotions as the game played out? Were you nervous at all? Did you have to play into the game?

TB: Not nervous. Just kind of always kind of how I feel during a game. It was a little bit back and forth. Couldn’t really quite get the ball in the end zone, so that was a little bit frustrating. They just do a good job of – I think between trying to understand what they were going to do defensively and then also dealing with the weather. There of some unique challenges tonight. I thought Patriots played a great game.

It’s a talented football team. They’ve got a lot of good players. They hit on a lot of plays tonight. We had a lot of penalties that kind of hurt us, but took care of the ball better and ended up being a good win.

Q: Before the game Robert Kraft said he would love to (regarding retiring and a one-day contract.)

TB: Are you offering me a one-day contract or did he offer me that? He didn’t offer me that, so… I still got some time left with the Bucs, and like I said, really enjoying that. We got a lot to accomplish this year. It’s a tough challenging year. It’s a marathon of a season. It’s only four games in. There is a lot football to be played. It feels good to win on the road, so happy we did that. And again, appreciate all you guys. Sorry for keeping you guys late. Telling my friends here. Good luck to you guys, have a great year, and I’ll see you down the road.

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