WATCH: Tom Brady receives video tribute on screen in stadium before game
As Tom Brady returned to his former home stadium of 20 seasons as their star quarterback, the Patriots honored his time in New England with a video tribute. The video highlighted several of Brady’s most memorable moments with the Patriots, including clips of him and tight end Rob Gronkowski, head coach Bill Belichick and owner Robert Kraft.
Tom Brady receives video tribute
On an emotional night with Brady’s return to Foxboro for the first time since leaving the Patriots, fans in attendance joined the Patriots organization in honoring his impact on the franchise before the game began.
The ovations and love didn’t last for long however, as Brady received loud boos from Patriots fans the first time he took the field as an opponent.
It’s difficult to say how much of an impact the fans and the emotions of the night had on him early. On the Buccaneers’ opening drive, Brady completed two of four passes for 14 yards before punting.
On their second drive, the night’s other major storyline saw its time in the spotlight as Brady set the new career passing yards record. Brady surpassed Brees’ record of 80,358 career passing yards in the first quarter, with Brees in attendance on the sideline.
With one record down, there is still one more milestone for Brady’s career at stake during the game. If Brady can beat the Patriots, he will be the fourth NFL quarterback to have a win against all 32 NFL teams. Drew Brees, Brett Favre and Peyton Manning are the only other three quarterbacks to accomplish the feat.
As the game went to halftime, the Patriots led the Buccaneers and Brady 7-6 in a close game affected by heavy rain. The Buccaneers missed their second attempt at a field goal in the game that could have given them a slight lead in the half.
Belichick acknowledges Brady’s impact on career
With everybody preparing for Tom Brady’s return to Foxboro on Sunday night as the opposing quarterback for the first time in his NFL career, even his former coach Bill Belichick had positive things to say. Brady played in 20 seasons for the Patriots, where he won six Super Bowls. Belichick appreciates Brady, calling him the best quarterback any coach could ask for.
“Of course not,” Belichick said when asked if he thinks he would have the same amount of success in New England without having Brady as his quarterback. “We’ve talked about that for two decades. I think I’ve talked about that dozens of times saying there is no quarterback I would rather have than Tom Brady. I still feel that way, I was very lucky to have Tom as the quarterback and to coach him. He was as good as any coach could ever ask for.”
In his 20-year career with the Patriots, Brady threw for 74,571 yards, 541 touchdowns and 179 interceptions. Brady also had a successful start to his tenure with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season, throwing for 4,633 yards and 40 touchdowns. His 4,633 yards were Brady’s highest total since 2015, and his 40 touchdowns were his most since 2007.
On3’s Jonathan Wagner contributed to this article.