Tom Brady has been getting well wishes on his retirement, calling it a career after 22 incredible seasons in which he won seven Super Bowls and five Super Bowl MVPs while throwing for the most passing yards (84.520) and passing touchdowns (624) in NFL history. Brady's career is unlike any other, yet he has a message to a young quarterback he believes is ready to carry the mantle.
Not Patrick Mahomes. Not Josh Allen. Not Joe Burrow. Not Justin Herbert.
The quarterback Brady believes will be "next" is Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, who sent a farewell message to Brady on his Instagram. Brady's response was a simple one.
Tom Brady to Lamar Jackson (copy edits by me): You’re next.
— Jonas Shaffer (@jonas_shaffer) February 2, 2022
(via IG/tombrady) pic.twitter.com/oYJXfcRHLf
Of course, Jackson is a big fan of Brady. He had plenty of admiration for the future Hall of Fame quarterback when asked about facing Brady prior to their "Sunday Night Football" showdown in 2019.
"It's just his poise in the pocket," Jackson said on Football Night in America, via Boston.com. "He just looks like he's so relaxed, like he's on vacation. He just picks defenses apart and I want to be on that level. I admire that."
Statistically, Jackson is on an incredible start to his career. Jackson is 37-12 in his 49 career starts, as the 37 wins are the most by a quarterback before turning 25 in league history. Jackson is the fastest quarterback in league history (35 games) to reach 5,000 passing yards & 2,000 rushing yards. He's also the first player in NFL history to reach 5,000 passing yards and 2,500 rushing yards in the first three seasons of a career. His 10 100-yard rushing games are tied with Michael Vick for the most by a quarterback in NFL history.
Jackson has thrown for 9,967 yards and 84 touchdowns in his first four seasons (49 starts) while rushing for 3,673 yards and 21 touchdowns. He's the first quarterback to rush for 1,000 yards in a season twice and is already seventh on the all-time rushing yards list for quarterbacks.
Jackson is changing the way the game is played, which may be what Brady sees in the talented quarterback. Brady must see Super Bowl championships in Jackson's future, especially in a talented AFC.
