Getty Image / Nic Antaya
When Tom Brady speaks, people should pretty much always listen. The Greatest quarterback of all-time learned a thing or two as a seven-time Super Bowl Champion who dominated the NFL for twenty years.
As Tom Brady gets ready to step into the broadcast booth for FOX this year on their number-one broadcast team led by Kevin Burkhardt, he is going to be sharing his football opinions pretty frequently. He decided to get a head start on this on the Stephen A. Smith show, sharing his take on how quarterbacks are developed in the modern NFL.
Tom Brady famously started out as a 7th-string quarterback at Michigan before becoming the starter, and had a similar journey after being drafted with the 199th pick of the 2000 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots. We all know he only got the starting job in New England after Drew Bledsoe was injured in Week 2 of the 2001 NFL season.
Nowadays, the majority of 1st-round rookie quarterbacks are either starting Week 1 of their rookie year or playing right away. Tom Brady think that’s disastrous, and blames college football for part of the issues that have left the league a little weak at quarterback, as well.
Take a listen to what Tom Brady had to say.
.@TomBrady on the tragedy that is being forced on rookie QBs in today’s NFL pic.twitter.com/IReSLdYL1R
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 19, 2024
We’ve seen some quarterbacks hit the ground running and instantly become stars like Andrew Luck and more recently CJ Stroud. But, the vast majority need some time to adjust. It’s hard to argue that Patrick Mahomes getting to sit and learn for a year in Kansas City didn’t help him instantly become NFL MVP upon taking the starting job in year 2.
But, head coaches and general managers need to keep their jobs, and they are given more rope if the young quarterback is seeing the field. Ultimately, that’s just the nature of the NFL beast right now