[Sport] As Tom Brady turns 42, he stands above the rest as a winner, QB and teammate

[Lunix I]

There isn't a player more certain to make the Hall of Fame in his sport than Tom Brady. Making it to Canton is what every young player strives to do one day, though actually accomplishing that feat is rare.

Brady has performed at a remarkably high level for almost two full decades and as a result, he’s put together two Hall of Fame-worthy careers: One before his knee injury in 2008 and one after it. With little left to accomplish, Brady enters his 20th NFL season with the primary goal of winning another Super Bowl, which would be his seventh.

The 14-time Pro Bowler for the Patriots turns 42 years old Saturday, an age hardly reached on the field by quarterbacks -- or any player in any sport -- let alone ones still consistently winning championships. What he’s accomplished in the two seasons since turning 40 is stellar in its own right: one MVP award, two Super Bowl appearances (one win), a league-leading 4,577 passing yards in 2017 and 61 total touchdowns to 19 interceptions. Those are accolades any quarterback would pay to have in their prime, never mind at 40 and 41.

Yet, the second half of Brady’s career is more impressive than the first half when he was in his 20s. Since 2009, the year he turned 32, he’s never had a season in which he wasn’t named to the Pro Bowl. His “worst” season was 2013 when he had 25 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions, but still threw for 4,343 yards – sixth in the NFL.

Here are his stats in the last 10 seasons and where he ranks among all quarterbacks in that:

Completions: 3,703 (3rd)
Yards: 44,068 (2nd)
TDs: 320 (2nd)
QB rating: 100.6 (3rd)
Wins: 120 (1st)
Super Bowl victories: 3 (1st)

For almost two decades, Brady has been at the top of the class in terms of quarterbacks. Whether measuring his success by passing stats or wins, Brady stacks up against everyone.

He has the records to match, too.

Brady is No. 1 all-time in total wins (237), Super Bowls (6), division titles (16), touchdown passes (590, including playoffs), passing yards (81,693, including playoffs), playoff wins (30), playoff passing yards (11,179) and Super Bowl MVPs (4) – to name a few.

No one can touch his stats in Super Bowls, either. He holds the record for most appearances (9), passing yards (2,838), touchdowns (18), completions (256), attempts (392) – and sacks (18), for good measure.