Tom vs. Team
I’m a Patriots fan, but I had a sinking feeling when I read that Tom Brady had won his 3rd MVP the day before the Super Bowl. I’m not superstitious. It wasn’t the curse of the MVP that bothered me (last nine consecutive regular season MVPs have failed to win the big game, Tom included twice).
It was what winning the regular season MVP meant for the Patriots. It meant that Tom was the singular best player in the league, that his contributions above and beyond his team, were enough to highlight him as the best player.
He had a lot to overcome this year, with the loss of Edelman and other top receivers at different times. And a middling defense that gave up a lot of yards in the regular season. And of course, he had passed the 40 mark in age.
His MVP win made me reflect on how much focus there has been on Tom the GOAT (greatest of all time). There’s that Facebook documentary, Tom vs. Time. And his new book, The TB12 Method. And I keep seeing his great new logo everywhere:
I mean, it’s pretty rarified air for an athlete to have a snazzy, easily recognizable logo—especially one that was not created by a major sponsoring corporation like Nike.
When it came to the big game, Tom absolutely lived up to the hype. He completed 28 of 48 passes for an incredible 505 yards and three touchdowns, with three receivers gaining over 100 yards.
But that nagging feeling after he won the MVP stayed with me throughout the entire game. There are 53 active members on an NFL roster. With a ridiculously porous defense, it didn’t matter how many yards TB12 put up, the league MVP was doomed.
Tom vs. Time came out at exactly the wrong time. It should have come out after the Super Bowl.
Football is a team sport. In the end, TB12 didn’t matter, because as great as he was as an individual, he was ultimately beaten by the better team.
The verdict on Tom vs. Team? Team wins.
