Happy anniversary, Patriots fans — today marks 24 years since Tom Brady arrived and changed the course of NFL history forever
24 years ago today…and it feels like yesterday.
Happy anniversary, Patriots fans!
It was 24 years ago today that the course of NFL history was changed forever. For most teams, your starting quarterback going down in a heap along the sideline in September is as unsettling of a development as you can have. For the New England Patriots, it turned out to be a stroke of fortune that ushered in a dynasty.
That’s right. It was 24 years ago today that Drew Bledsoe was injured against the New York Jets and Tom Brady assumed the starting quarterback job with the Patriots.
Today marks the 24th anniversary of Tom Brady taking over at quarterback for Drew Bledsoe
About the only person among those affiliated with the Patriots who may not feel like celebrating is Bledsoe. Granted, he would go on after ceding the starting job to Brady to play five more seasons in the NFL and start for both the Dallas Cowboys and the Buffalo Bills — so it wasn’t all bad after Bledsoe saw his gig in New England slip away, especially given that he collected a Super Bowl ring with the Patriots for their magical breakthrough season in 2001.
The rest of the NFL and their fans may not feel particularly keen to celebrate either. Brady, of course, would go on to re-write the NFL record books and terrorize the AFC East and NFC South for two decades after finally getting his big chance.
More than anything, this anniversary every year should serve as a reminder to the unpredictable nature of the NFL and how any given season could be magic. The Patriots were fresh off of a 5-11 season with a very well-established quarterback in Bledsoe at the helm in 2000. But at the drop of a hat, or in this case starting quarterback, the team’s immediate and long-term future were redirected to heights the NFL had never seen before.
Happy anniversary to the birth of a dynasty, Patriots fans. You’re an inspiration to us all.
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