Tom Brady Says He's 'Overwhelmed with Gratitude' as He’s Inducted into Patriots Hall of Fame

Brady, who formally retired from the NFL in 2023, is the 35th Patriots player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame

Seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady was inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame on Wednesday, June 12, honoring the NFL legend and his 20 seasons with the team.

Brady, who formally retired from the NFL in 2023, is the 35th Patriots player to be inducted into the team's Hall of Fame. During the ceremony, Brady spoke about his illustrious football career with New England, saying he was "overwhelmed with gratitude and a deep sense of honor."

"Relationships are built on shared experience, and the most meaningful things in my life are my relationships. I truly wish I had more time; I wish I had more time to give you all. So, how do I sum up two decades in New England in one short speech? The answer is simple: You can't," he said.

Brady thanked some of his loved ones, including his parents, calling them "my rock, my foundation." Speaking about his children, he said, "Your dad loves you more than anything in this world. Your smiles outshine the morning sun. And where I live now, that's a pretty brilliant sun. There's no greater joy than watching the three of you grow and teach me things on your way to becoming incredible young adults."

Former Patriots coach Bill Belichick was also on hand at the induction ceremony with kind words for his former quarterback.

Related: Tom Brady Says He 'Could Never Have Been the Player I Was' Without Bill Belichick After Coach Leaves Patriots

"It was a tremendous honor and privilege to draft Tom and coach him for 20 years. As we've heard from so many of his teammates, his pursuit of excellence, his work ethic, the drive, the competitiveness, everything he brought to the dream, it was really an honor for me to be involved with that," he said.

Belichick added that Brady was "a model for consistency, dependability, and for always doing the right thing, expressing that his "determination and relentless for excellence was beyond anything I've seen from [the quarterback] position."

Related: Tom Brady Tears Up as He Talks About Decision to Leave the Patriots: 'Life Is Very Imperfect' (Exclusive)

Players usually wait four years after retirement before they are inducted, but Patriots chairman and CEO Robert Kraft announced in September 2023 that Brady's grace period would be waived and his signature No. 12 jersey would be retired, according to the Patriots website.

Kraft spoke highly of Brady's leadership on and off the field, expressing, "You instilled a level of confidence that simply didn't exist before your arrival, not only in your coaches and teammates but Patriot fans everywhere."

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Before his retirement, Brady sought a two-year contract worth $50 million following the 2019-2020 season, which the Patriots declined to offer. Instead, Brady decided to become a free agent and joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the same amount in March 2020. He played his final three NFL seasons with Tampa Bay, winning his seventh Super Bowl in 2021 with the team.

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