FOXBORO, Mass. — Two of the most famous No. 12s in sports history will face off Sunday night when the New England Patriots host the Green Bay Packers.
Quarterbacks Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers both wear the jersey number, but it’s not necessarily the number Brady would have picked as a rookie.
“It wasn’t really my choice,” Brady said Friday. “I was 10 in college, and when I got here (punter) Lee Johnson was 10. So, whatever number was on my locker, which was 12, that was the one that (former equipment manager) Don Brocher gave me, so I wore that my first year, then we released Lee, and I thought about going back to 10, but I just stuck with 12.”
The Patriots released Johnson five games into the 2001 season. So, Brady actually would have been three games into his starting career if he had switched to No. 10 at that point.
No. 12 fits Brady well because some of the best quarterbacks in NFL history have worn the number, like Jim Kelly, Roger Staubach and Terry Bradshaw.
“I haven’t thought about that much, but yeah, there are a lot of great quarterbacks who have worn it,” Brady said. “It’s a pretty typical quarterback number, but it’s worked pretty well for me. I’m glad they gave me that when I first got here. (I’ve) had a lot of good games in it, a lot of great wins.”
