Tom Brady has spent the last 20 years chopping up defenses with his all-time great skills and intellect.
No wonder why he doesn't respect that side of the ball.
Brady was a guest Monday night on the critically acclaimed ManningCast, and he was awesome. For years, folks around these parts have wondered what it would be like to watch a football game with the GOAT. We finally got our answer last night — albeit in a slightly sanitized made-for-TV way.
The experience didn’t disappoint. Brady was funny, opinionated and insightful. He may lie 95% of the time with the press, but he appeared to be all truth with the Manning brothers. Take his views on playing defense, for example. It’s easy to imagine Brady repeating the same takedown in the Buccaneers’ next quarterbacks meeting.
“Have you ever been in some of those defensive meeting rooms? You wonder why they play defense, and after about two minutes you go, ‘Yep, they could never be an offensive player,’” Brady said. “Defense is kind of like a dog chasing a car.”
Playing defense is like a dog chasing a car?! @TomBrady is not my friend anymore.
— Tedy Bruschi (@TedyBruschi) October 26, 2021
Brady has been more open about his views on general football matters ever since moving to Tampa Bay. In recent months, he’s criticized the league’s “pointless” jersey number changes and said the NFL is becoming “softer.” Oh, and he also ripped an unnamed team for sticking with an unnamed “MFer” at quarterback.
Eviscerating the entire concept of playing defense falls along those lines.
Later, Brady jokingly explained how he would stop the Buccaneers’ high-flying offense if he were a defensive coordinator.
“I like a lot of one-on-one coverage to Mike Evans and Antonio [Brown] and Chris Godwin,” he said. “Do the best you can. I think you’ve just gotta come up and challenge us. Just get up there and see what you can do. I think that’s really been a style that’s been successful. I really encourage that.”
Brady also seemingly felt encouraged to take shots at the Manning brothers, matching them barb for barb. At one point, Brady said he enjoyed his games against Peyton more than Eli, because, well, you know.
That’s ice cold.
The ManningCast works so well, because Peyton and Eli are able to easily toggle between analysis and ball-busting. Early in Brady's appearance, Peyton said Brady called him 48 hours before his first game as a Bug, asking how he integrated the Colts' offensive concepts into Denver's scheme.
When the conversation turned to the game, Brady also displayed his Hall of Fame insight.
He may not respect defenses, but he certainly prepares for them. During one replay, Brady offered a realtime scouting report on rookie Saints cornerback Paulson Adebo. “He’s a rookie third round pick,” Brady said. “I was studying him today. He’s big, he’s rangy. They traded for Bradley Roby, who’s only playing like 20 snaps per game.”
The Bucs play the Saints this Sunday. Adebo better watch out.
