Tom Brady may be considered the greatest NFL player of all time by many, but he still has one major regret from his years in the league.
The seven-time Super Bowl champ appeared on The Pivot podcast last month, hosted by fellow retired players Ryan Clark, Fred Taylor and Channing Crowder.
The 46-year-old said he took football ‘too seriously’ compared to other quarterbacks, namely 28-year-old Chiefs star Patrick Mahomes.
‘When I see these young players, I see like Patrick [Mahomes] out there at quarterback, running around, laughing, having fun, I’m like, “I used to be like that. What the hell happened?” Brady said with a laugh.
‘I just got too serious, but, again, I can only look back and think, “Okay, if I do it again, which I’ll never do it again, I would be different.” But the reality is, you can’t.’
Although he isn’t planning on un-retiring again, Brady said he’s taking that mentality to his second career in the broadcast booth.
‘So you learn from it. Now, next phase of life, enjoy it a little more,’ he explained.
Fans were quick to comment on the podcast clip when it was posted to social media.
‘Brady has never once looked like he’s having fun in his entire life,’ one fan joked on X.
‘Nah winning is fun, you did it right Tom,’ another added.
A third chimed in, ‘That’s what made brady so great. He was never the most talented he was always smarter and outworked everyone.’
Elsewhere in the episode, the Patriots Hall of Famer reflected on his attitude in the early years of his career.
‘I wouldn’t say I took the success for granted. Maybe I took some of the wins for granted, like in the playing career. I mean, the reason I fell in love with football was … never to be a champion. I love just throwing the football,’ he said.
‘When I got older, I would enjoy practice more than the games because I felt like I had such high expectation in the game,’ Brady continued.
‘In practice, no one was watching. I could have a little more fun. I could be a little more lighter. Even when I look at myself later in my career, I had this face — it was a scowl — all the time. It was me just being super self-critical.’
Since hanging up his football boots, the former signal caller has inked a lucrative 10-year, $375million contract with Fox Sports to become the network’s lead NFL analyst starting this fall.
In addition to his highly-anticipated broadcast career, Brady is a part franchise owner of multiple teams.
He owns stakes in the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces, Birmingham City FC in the EFL, and Las Vegas Night Owls in Major League Pickleball. He is also bidding to be a part-owner of the Las Vegas Raiders.