Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady announced his retirement Wednesday after an unprecedented 23-year NFL career that included seven Super Bowl wins, 15 Pro Bowl selections, five Super Bowl MVP awards and three NFL MVP awards included.
If Brady really hung up his shoes — he retired last year only to return to the Bucs — then his final touch went to Julio Jones for a 12-yard gain in Tampa Bay’s 31-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC playoffs next Jan. 16.
In a way, it gave Brady a career that comes full circle.
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The quarterback received his first NFL degree on November 23, 2000. After beating New England 34-9 in game 12 of the season by the Detroit Lions, Brady made his NFL debut in the Patriots possession finals of the game.
After two incompletes to the relief of Drew Bledsoe, Brady connected with running back JR Redmond for a 4-yard gain and his first NFL closure. But guard Damien Woody was flagged for being an unauthorized receiver on the field and wiping out the game.
On the next snap, Brady threw Rod Rutledge to the tight end for a 6-yard gain for his first official NFL closure.
The full circle component? Rutledge and Jones are Alabama alumni. Selected 13 years apart in the NFL draft, they are also former Alabama high school stars — Rutledge at Erwin at Center Point and Jones at Foley.
Between his passes to Rutledge and Jones, Brady completed 8,951 passes in 383 regular season and playoff games.
Only one other Alabama alumnus has caught one of these passes. In 2015, Michael Williams caught three passes for 26 yards from Brady, which is the overall stats of his NFL career. Williams was also a prep star in Alabama in Pickens County.
After his only finish for Rutledge in 2000, Brady became New England’s starting quarterback in 2001 and had three more finishes for 25 yards to the tight end. The Patriots ended the season with a 20-17 win over the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI.
That was Rutledge’s final season with the Patriots. He was a member of the Houston Texans’ inaugural season in 2002.
Brady and Jones only played together in the 2022 season. In 10 regular season games and one playoff contest with the Buccaneers, Jones caught 31 passes for 373 yards and three touchdowns from Brady.
New England Patriots tight end Rod Rutledge (83) celebrates after Super Bowl XXXVI against the St. Louis Rams February 3, 2002 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.(AP Photo/Doug Mills)
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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for the Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.
New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (left) and tight end Michael Williams celebrate after a touchdown during an NFL game against the Miami Dolphins at Gillette Stadium October 29, 2015 in Foxborough, Mass.(Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)