Patriots
There are many moments from Brady’s career that his Patriots statue could be modeled after.
It’s been known for a year that Tom Brady will get a statue outside of Gillette Stadium, but we finally found out when that statue will be unveiled.
The Patriots will unveil Brady’s statue ahead of their preseason opener against the Commanders on Aug. 8, the team announced Thursday.
Of course, we won’t know what the statue looks like until then, although we do know that it will stand 12 feet tall. It’s also likely that the statue is already complete and is just awaiting to be placed in its new home.
Still, that won’t stop us from sharing ideas on what we hope Brady’s statue will look like. So, in honor of No. 12, here are 12 moments from Brady’s time with the Patriots that the statue should be modeled after.
Brady’s spike following touchdown run in Tuck Rule Game
If the Patriots wanted to troll Brady’s current team, they could model his statue after the Tuck Rule play itself. That probably wouldn’t make for the best statue, though.
However, the moment he spiked the ball and fell into the snow after rushing for a touchdown that helped cut the Raiders’ lead in the 2001 AFC Divisional Round game could be a fun one to model the statue after. The play also helped start his legend as one of the best clutch players in the history of the sport.
Super Bowl XXXVI celebration
When Brady took the podium following the Patriots’ Super Bowl XXXVI win, he put his hands on his head as he expressed near disbelief over what happened. In fairness to him, the Patriots’ win over the Rams was one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history. He had also led the Patriots down the field in the final minutes for the game-winning field goal, doing so as John Madden memorably suggested on the Fox broadcast that the Patriots should play for overtime.
Juking out Brian Urlacher
In terms of athleticism, Brady ranks far closer to the bottom than the top among quarterbacks in NFL history. So, that’s why it was a major surprise when he juked Brian Urlacher to pick up a first down late in the Patriots’ win over the Bears in 2006, drawing a loud roar from the Gillette Stadium crowd. Of course, Brady isn’t remembered for his rushing ability, so using this play to model his statue after might not make too much sense. But it would be pretty neat.
His leap into the end zone for a touchdown in 2011 AFC Championship Game
Before the rise of the tush push, Brady might have had a case for being the best player to run the quarterback sneak in NFL history. Needing a touchdown on a fourth-and-goal from the 1-yard line in the 2011 AFC Championship Game, Brady leaped over the Patriots’ offensive line and Ravens’ defensive line to get into the end zone for a pivotal score in the fourth quarter.
The Patriots went on to win that game as Brady would play in his fifth Super Bowl two weeks later. Brady didn’t play his best game that day, throwing two interceptions. But the rushing touchdown made for one of the cooler images in his 23-year career.
Game-winning touchdown in Super Bowl XLIX
Brady and the Patriots broke their 10-year Super Bowl drought in 2014 when they defeated the Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX. But they needed to make a comeback in order to do so, wiping away a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter when Brady threw a two-yard touchdown pass to Julian Edelman to give the Patriots a 28-24 lead. Right after the pass, Brady pointed to the Patriots’ sideline in celebration. Either Brady in his natural stance from the pocket on this play or his point could really make for a strong looking statue.
Taking in Super Bowl XLIX win
After Brady threw the game-winning touchdown pass in Super Bowl XLIX, Malcolm Butler made one of the greatest plays in NFL history when he intercepted Russell Wilson at the goal line to seal the Patriots’ win. When the Patriots got the ball back to kneel the clock out, a fight between the two teams broke out. However, Brady soaked in the moment, so much so that he briefly didn’t acknowledge Richard Sherman’s attempt for a handshake. Obviously, ou would have to make a second statue to really commemorate this moment, so it might be a longshot to make this the Brady statue.
Preparing to comeback from 28-3 deficit in Super Bowl LI
Almost nothing went Brady’s way for nearly the first three quarters of Super Bowl LI. The Patriots only scored three points, and Brady was responsible for seven of the Falcons’ 28 points in that game when Robert Alford returned his interception for an 82-yard touchdown late in the first half.
That pick-six only gave the Falcons a 21-0 lead at the time en route to holding a 28-3 edge late in the third quarter. But after Brady threw that interception, the Fox broadcast showed the Patriots’ quarterback appearing to keep his cool before leading his team to the greatest comeback in Super Bowl history.
Hoisting the Lombardi Trophy after Super Bowl LI
A couple of hours after keeping his cool as his team faced a large deficit, Brady let it all out on the podium when the Patriots were presented the Lombardi Trophy. An emotional Brady lifted the trophy above his head before pumping it with his arm, yelling “Let’s go!” Of course, that win came in the same year he served a four-game suspension for his alleged involvement in the Deflategate scandal. His mother, Galynn, had also battled cancer that year, adding even more emotional weight for Brady in that game. As some view the win as the greatest in Patriots history, having it further remembered as a statue would make sense.
Celebrating 2018 AFC Championship Game win over Chiefs
Brady was able to fend off Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs in the 2018 AFC Championship Game when he led the Patriots down the field for a touchdown on the opening drive in overtime. After watching Rex Burkhead run into the end zone, Brady ripped off his helmet and jumped into a pile of his teammates en route to New England’s sixth Super Bowl title. Recreating that in statue form might be tough, but it would be pretty neat to see.
Breaking the regular-season passing touchdown record in 2007
There are multiple moments from this play that could be memorialized with a statue. If the Patriots wanted to get creative, they could make a statue of Brady preparing to throw the ball deep down and a second statue of Moss making the reception in that 2007 game against the Giants. In addition to giving Brady the single-season passing touchdown record at the time, the play also gave Moss the record for the most receiving touchdowns in a single season.
After throwing that 65-yard touchdown, Brady was lifted up by Patriots offensive lineman Dan Koppen, giving another moment that could be memorialized by a statue.
Brady-Belichick embrace
The Patriots haven’t announced any plans for a Bill Belichick statue, and Belichick’s relationship with owner Robert Kraft has seemed to be on rocky terms since he left in 2024. One way to help potentially repair the icy relationship could be to include a Belichick statue side-by-side with Brady’s.
Running out on the field for pre-game warmups and saying “Let’s go!”
This might be the favorite for what Brady’s statue will be modeled after. In the latter half of his 20 years with the Patriots, Brady’s jog onto the field for pre-game warmups as Jay Z’s “Pubic Service Announcement” played became a Gillette Stadium staple. Brady would end the end zone to end zone jog with a fist bump yelling, “Let’s go!” Brady recreated his warmup jog when he returned to Gillette Stadium to make a speech at halftime in the Patriots’ Week 1 loss to the Eagles in 2023.
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