Bill Belichick gets candid on Tom Brady's growth with Patriots: 'He wasn't even really good, but he became great'

"“He just day by day takes incredibly small steps that eventually lead to a high performance. He was our 4th string quarterback, you can't name another 4th string quarterback in any level of football. That's how far down her was.... pic.twitter.com/Tz8aFlUAKE- Savage (@Savageboston) May 18, 2026”"

"“If you spend time around Tom, you understand how totally committed he is,” Belichick said. “And how he just, day by day, takes incredibly small steps that eventually - but never backward - that eventually lead to a very high performance. And I mean, really, he was our fourth-string quarterback. You can't name another fourth-string quarterback, I would say, in any level of football. That's how far down he was.”"

"“I mean, you couldn't get any further on the bench than he was. He was the fourth string, never even played, never even dressed. And then I brought in Damon Huard, because I didn't think he was good enough to be the backup, and”"

Tom Brady began his Patriots career as a raw prospect who was the fourth-string quarterback and never played or even dressed. Bill Belichick described Brady as far down the depth chart as possible, emphasizing that no other fourth-string quarterback could be named at any level of football. Belichick also noted that he brought in Damon Huard because he did not think Brady was good enough to be the backup. Over time, Brady’s commitment and determination drove steady progress through small daily steps. Those incremental improvements led to high performance and ultimately to major accomplishments, including multiple Super Bowl MVP honors.

Read at Boston.com