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Happy Tom Brady Day, everyone!
As most of you know, I have been campaigning quite hard to get August 3rd, Tommy B's birthday, declared a national holiday. And while I'm inching ever closer to making my dream a reality, we aren't there quite yet. But not to be forgotten amid all the pomp and circumstance surrounding the birth of New England's savior is today, September 23rd. On this day, 14 years ago, Mo Lewis took Drew Bledsoe out, injuring him severely and sending the 199th pick of the 2000 NFL Draft out onto the field. And while the Patriots would go on to lose that game 10-3, in no small part because of a Tuck Rule call in the Jets' favor when a Vinny Testaverde strip sack was deemed an incomplete pass and not a fumble, we all know how that season ended. Kind of funny to think that the very same Tuck Rule that would thrust Brady into the national spotlight to stay was indirectly responsible for him taking the field that fateful September afternoon. After all, if the Patriots recover that fumble, the Jets don't score, it's a different game, and likely a different playcall than the one that took Bledsoe out.
Regardless, let's all take a moment to wish each other a Happy Tom Brady Day. It's a great time to be a Pats fan, and today is a wonderful reminder of that.