Why Do We Hate Tom Brady?

To start with, not everyone hates Tom Brady. There are those who root for him for geographical reasons, such as my sister-in-law, who is from Massachusetts, and for sentimental reasons, like my dad, who likes him because he played for Michigan. I root for Michigan, and remember fondly the Orange Bowl that Brady won, coming back from 14 points, twice. But despite the maize and blue he wore twenty years ago, I wish him nothing but disaster on the football field now.

I watched the entire Super Bowl yesterday, one of the worst (it recalled the dreary Super VII, won by Miami 14-7 over Washington, the lowest number of points in a game until now), or Super Bowl IX, which has the lowest half-time score, Pittsburgh 2, Minnesota 0. Even with Brady playing just an okay game, the Patriots defense dominated, and Julian Edelman made several catches to help the Pats win 13-3 over the Rams. The game was depressing in its result, as well its level of excitement.

Brady is a hated figure throughout the football world. And it takes some analysis to figure out why. As I remember, Joe Montana, Terry Bradshaw, or Troy Aiken, who also dominated Super Bowls over a number of years, were not this hated. Unlike the New York Yankees, who are hated on an institutional basis, I don't believe any of the other Patriots are hated as much as Brady, except perhaps for coach Bill Belichik, who seems to be part ogre (he held his granddaughter during post-game celebrations, perhaps in an attempt to make him seem human). But Brady inspires singular hatred.

One of the reasons is that people who are not Patriot fans get sick of him winning all the time. Last year, the Eagles win was great for two reasons--a team that hadn't won a championship in nearly sixty years won, and Brady lost. Watching Tom Brady lose, or throw an interception, or get sacked, is one of life's great pleasures. If a backup came in to play, it just wouldn't be the same.

Probably the major reason we hate Tom Brady is because within everyone, even the kindest person, there exists a need for schadenfreude, the pleasure derived from watching someone else suffer. And who better to watch suffer than a person who seems to have a charmed life. Brady was a good quarterback at Michigan, but was benched for Drew Henson (!) and was a sixth-round draft pick. There is no scientific reason for his success, not only as an athlete but in marrying a super model and having what seems to be a perfect family. He has only missed one season due to injury, and was suspended for being involved in "deflate-gate," which he still denies. You don't root for a hobo to have misfortune, but a handsome fellow who suspiciously seems to have traded his soul for success? You want him to suffer.

There are other intangibles that apply to me and some others, such as his support for Donald Trump, but mostly it's just that he's had his turn and we could use some new stars in the NFL. I will acknowledge that if Satan did not have anything to do with this, he is one of the great QBs of all-time, certainly in winning (I still can't say if he's better than Montana or Johnny Unitas, as with football you can't compare time periods due to the advancing size and speed of the players). But when he loses he does reluctantly, like it took several tries to kill Rasputin.

Brady is 41, and one day he will be gone from the league. Belichik will probably retire when Brady does--why should he start over in his late 60s with a new quarterback? Patrick Mahomes and Jared Goff and Baker Mayfield will eventually take over, and Brady will either be on a studio like Bradshaw or just enjoying his money with his family. For that, I can not wait.