Tom Brady is one of the most polarizing athletes in professional sports.
He's loved by many, especially in New England and Tampa Bay. But he's also hated by a sizable chunk of the population despite earning a mostly favorable reputation among his NFL peers.
Why is that?
It could be the Patriots' involvement in scandals, like Spygate and Deflategate. After all, Brady was suspended four games for the latter.
It could be jealousy. The Patriots made nine Super Bowl appearances with Brady at the helm, hoisting the Lombardi Trophy on six occasions. And now, Brady is leading the Buccaneers into Super Bowl LV in his first season with Tampa Bay.
Colin Cowherd has another theory, however, that perhaps says more about Brady's haters than the 43-year-old quarterback himself.
"We still love (Brett) Favre, love (Michael Jordan), love Peyton Manning. They had flaws," Cowherd said Tuesday on FS1. "You wanna know why a lot of people hate Tom? He's never needed us.
"Supermodel wife. He doesn't even need (Bill) Belichick. He's rich. Wife's rich. Kids will be. He never needs us to embrace him."
Brady has had a few hiccups in his career, including the ball-deflating allegations and New England's three Super Bowl losses with him under center. But Brady's worst days would be the best days for most, and some football fans just can't stand that perfect image he's created over his two decades of dominance. It's almost mythical at this point.
"Everybody wants to be needed. Everybody's had to overcome something. The big beef with Tom is he was once drafted in the sixth round," Cowherd said. "Even our superheroes -- Spider-Man, his uncle dies. Batman, his parents died. Superman, basically he got shoved to another planet, his planet blew up, Kryptonite.
" ... Tom Brady, his only true rival now is time, and he's beating that. And he doesn't need our help. And he created his own avocado ice cream. We wanna hug ya. We want you to need us. And Tom never does."
Brady sure showed this season he doesn't need the comforts of New England to thrive, as he's one win away from his seventh Super Bowl ring while the Patriots posted their first losing record since 2000.
