Tom Brady Hits Back with Expletive-Filled Response to People Thinking He Lacked Toughness in the NFL
On his "Let's Go" podcast, the future Fox broadcaster shared his perspective with Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor on how the game has changed
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Tom Brady is pushing back on critics who say he was less than tough throughout his 23-season NFL career that spanned seven Super Bowl championships.
In a conversation with Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor on his Let’s Go podcast, Brady and the retired New York Giants linebacker, 64, swapped perspectives on how the game has changed now that their playing days are over.
“Everyone thinks I was a p---y out there,'' Brady, 46, said while discussing how much he was sacked over the course of his career. "I took every single [hit] and got my ass up!''
Brady continued, “I never wanted a defensive player going home going ‘I knocked the s--- out of him and he didn’t get up,' so I made sure I got up.”
Related: Tom Brady Criticizes NFL Officiating: ‘It's More Like Flag Football’
For his part, Taylor — who played his entire career for the Giants from 1981-1993 — couldn’t believe that given his GOAT status, Brady remains the league’s leader for most sacks ever with 565.
“I didn’t even realize that,” Taylor said, laughing. “I didn’t think you got your pants dirty during the game.”
He hilariously added: “You were a bad little runner for a white boy. You had some great skills, man, and you should be very proud of what you done — no matter what.”
Yet the two-time Super Bowl champ and 10-time Pro Bowler did agree with Brady that the game has evolved — going as far as to say he didn’t think he could play in today’s NFL.
"The game has changed a little bit, you know?" Taylor said. "Just a couple weeks ago I saw a running back, [D'Andre Swift], get fined for trucking. What the hell is trucking? He got fined for running over the [defensive back]. I don't understand that. The game has changed a little bit. I like the era that I played in because if I was playing nowadays, I probably wouldn't last the game."
While Brady awaits his next high-profile role related to the NFL, as Fox Sports’ lead analyst next year, he himself has been an outspoken critic about the current quality of the league's play.
Last month, Brady aired his grievances about the decline in the NFL’s "quality" while on The Stephen A. Smith Show.
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"I think there's a lot of mediocrity in today's NFL," Brady said. "I don't see the excellence that I saw in the past."
He added, "I think the coaching isn't as good as it was. I don't think the development of young players is as good as it was.”
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