Brady and Belichick

The New England Patriots struck gold when they selected Tom Brady with the 199th overall selection in the 1999 NFL Draft.  Brady has been better than anyone could have expected.  He's led the New England Patriots to three Super Bowl championships.  He's captured two regular season MVP awards and has been named to a plethora of Pro Bowls.  He and coach Bill Belichick have seemingly been a match made in heaven.

Brady and Belichick have been a fixture in the AFC East since Drew Bledsoe ' s injury forced Brady into the Patriots starting line-up.  The entire arrangement almost never happened had it not been for a devastating blow from Jets linebacker Moe Lewis.

Brady is rightfully viewed as one of the best players of his generation.  He is to New England what Derek Jeter has been to New York since 1996.  Much like Jeter, Brady was in the right place and right time.  Both men flourished on the highest stage with the help of great coaches and unselfish intelligent teammates.

Much of Brady 's early success is linked to his team and coaches.  That fact leads me to question how great would Brady be in an entirely different system.  Brady hasn't won a Super Bowl since the Patriots were caught in the spy gate scandal.  Former New England coach Eric Mangini pulled the plug on the Patriots while coaching for the division rival New York Jets.

Brady probably will never play for a coach other than Belichick.  The two have outlasted an entire generation and are still in pursuit of their fourth championship together.  They are by far the longest tenured coach and player combination in the league.  Both men will enter the pro football Hall-of-Fame someday.  The two might have had a hard time getting in without the help of the other.

Someday this beautiful partnership will come to an end.  When that day comes the sports world will be saying goodbye to an odd couple that came together in the strangest manner.