Tom Brady can make just about anybody look good.
The New England Patriots quarterback has accomplished a lot in his illustrious NFL career, most notably winning four Super Bowl titles and more games than any other signal caller in history, but perhaps his most impressive quality is his ability to bring out the best in others. Brady hasn’t always had the best supporting cast on offense, yet the Patriots keep thriving year after year under his and head coach Bill Belichick’s guidance.
For proof of Brady’s knack for delivering the goods regardless of who’s around him, one must look no further than the list of players who’ve caught at least one touchdown pass from the future Hall of Famer.
Patriots tight end Matt Lengel added his name to that list Saturday with a TD grab — the first catch of his career — in New England’s 41-3 win over the New York Jets at Gillette Stadium.
Lengel became the 64th player to catch a touchdown pass from Brady, who was drafted in the sixth round (199th overall) in 2000. There’s no telling what kind of NFL career he’ll carve out, but there’s been little hype surrounding the 26-year-old, so there’s certainly a chance he’ll become just a footnote in Brady’s dominance.
Now, that isn’t to take anything away from Lengel, who, to steal a phrase from Belichick’s arsenal, did his job against the Jets. And we also must acknowledge that Brady has delivered plenty of his 453 career touchdown passes to some talented players. After all, he’s played with the likes of Randy Moss, Rob Gronkowski, Wes Welker, Julian Edelman, Troy Brown and Deion Branch, just to name a few.
But some of the other names on the list, which probably will grow before Brady retires, aren’t as recognizable. So, let’s again give arguably the greatest quarterback of all time credit where it’s due.
Thumbnail photo via Ron Chenoy/USA TODAY Sports Images
