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Posted on 11/21/2023 10:41:24 AM PST by nickcarraway
Less than a year removed from his legendary playing career, Tom Brady evidently is not impressed with the current level of play in the NFL.
"I think there's a lot of mediocrity in today's NFL. I don't see the excellence that I saw in the past," Brady said during an appearance Monday on "The Stephen A. Smith Show."
Brady, who retired earlier this year after a record-setting 23-year career, cited numerous reasons for his evaluation of the game, including coaching and player development.
"I think the coaching isn't as good as it was," Brady said. "I don't think the development of young players is as good as it was. I don't think the schemes are as good as they were.
"The rules have allowed a lot of bad habits to get into the actual performance of the game. So I just think the product in my opinion is less than what it's been."
Scoring in the NFL has declined for the fourth consecutive season in 2023; teams are combining to score just 43.3 points per game, down from 43.8 last season and 45.9 in 2021. The league is on pace for its lowest-scoring season on average since 2009, when teams combined for 42.9 points per game.
One likely cause of the scoring decline is a high number of injuries to quarterbacks. Joe Burrow, Kirk Cousins, Deshaun Watson and Anthony Richardson headline the growing list of franchise quarterbacks who have suffered season-ending injuries, while other stars at the position -- including Aaron Rodgers and Kyler Murray -- have missed significant time.
Brady acknowledged the physicality of the sport but bemoaned recent rule changes designed to protect players from injury.
"I look at a lot of players like Ray Lewis and Rodney Harrison and Ronnie Lott and guys that impacted the game in a certain way -- and every hit they would have made would have been a penalty [today]," Brady said. "You hear coaches complaining about their own player being tackled and not necessarily -- why don't they talk to their player about how to protect himself? ... We used to work on the fundamentals of those things all the time. Now they're trying to be regulated all the time.
Tom Brady, amid the continuing decline in NFL scoring, says incoming rookies "were better prepared when I came out than they are now," and added that the overall product on the field "is less than what it's been." Jeff Bottari/NBAE via Getty Images
"Offensive players need to protect themselves. It's not up to a defensive player to protect an offensive player. A defensive player needs to protect himself. ... I think a lot of the way that the rules have come into play have allowed this -- you can essentially play carefree and then if anyone hits you hard, there's a penalty."
Brady, 46, is the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards and touchdown passes. The seven-time Super Bowl champion and three-time league MVP said he doesn't think "the athletes have changed much" since he started his NFL career in 2000, pointing instead to development at the college level.
"I actually think college players were better prepared when I came out than they are now," he said. "Just because so many coaches are changing programs, and I would say there's not even a lot of college programs anymore. There's a lot of college teams, but not programs that are developing players.
"So as they get delivered to the NFL, they may be athletic, but they don't have much of the skills developed to be a professional. When I played at Michigan, I essentially played at a college program that was very similar to a pro environment. When I see these different players come in, they're not quite as prepared as they were, and I think the game has shown that over the last 12 to 13 years. I think things have slipped a little bit."
That's a little boring to me.
I like it when I see some schools running the wishbone offense.
An NFL farm system is much more the case with ease of transfer with no consequences and the easy NLI rules.
Student athlete? What’s that?
Yep, if they have a core of 5 or so players you can gain an affinity for the “team”. You’re right about the Patriots.
And then a few years later, both teams outdid themselves when the Patriots lost to an even worse Giants team — with a 9-7 record, and (I believe) the only team ever to make a Super Bowl on a season where they scored fewer points than they gave up.
He had enough money, and every year carried the risk of crippling injury.
He made the right decision for himself.
I like watching old games on YT. Recently I saw Dolphins players fighting on the field with Raider fans in 1974 and Tarkenton refusing to run a play because he was cussing out the refs in 1975.
The NFL is a women’s league now. They have a lot of female fans. It’s just pablum. I would rather watch dust gather. And that isn’t counting the “holiday” commercials.
Brady’s saying what I’ve been saying for quite some time. Lazy tackling, head down blocking, weak arms, can’t move their feet, and I saw a call for hitting with a forearm last week. I’d still be in jail if the forearm shiver had been illegal in my day. Not to mention astro turf has eliminated grass in the earhole kinds of play. Just weak and I would outlaw field celebrations unless you were actually leading. Otherwise shut up and get back in the huddle. And almost nobody plays the whole game anymore and I’ve only seen one guy in recent time actually play on both sides of the ball. Poor babies get tired playing half a game-—puzzies!
You note, “The lackluster play design and play calls...,” yet you have Purdy, a young 49ers quarterback who is a throwback to smart qb field generals of an earlier era, and most media analysts are hoping he fails.
Jared Goff is the other one.
Well, I’m a little put off by the lack of good offensive coordinators and coaches in general. Smart field generals have a tough time overcoming unimaginative and unintelligent play designs and play calls.
NO Brady six rings without Pete Carroll’s stupid play last seconds of XLIX
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Truth in what you say.
The players negotiated to not have practices. They do padless run throughs, practicing consists of throwing and catching. I don’t know how many times I have seen supposedly great players on defense, run into someone expecting them to fall down, without using arms. Worse yet reaching around for a glory play of knocking the ball out and the guy goes for a TD. Anyone remember seeing anyone laying out for a tackle? Sure, they do it after the guy cannot be caught so it looks good on film.
Bring back the earhole shot, that makes players ears ring. Quit pretending that it is normal for a guy to fall on his back and get a concussion.
Brady won MVP of that game and gave his award (a new car) to Malcom Butler for busting up Pete Carrol’s boneheaded play.
“The biggest factor in the NFL’s slide into mediocrity has been the salary cap.”
You don’t think the Romney Rule has anything to do with it?
I don't think so, since it doesn't appear to have had much of an impact on hiring practices for head coaches anyway.
Jim, Congratulations! I think you just SINGLED OUT the CORE ISSUE... MONEY!
From OVERSIZED, yet UNEARNED PLAYER BONUSES, to GAMBLING now being openly attached to the game, who needs to worry about MONEY... it's everywhere and part of everything.
Only a very few of the PLAYERS are motivated to perform better. WHY worry about IMPROVING when you got all the MONEY up front in signing BONUSES and GUARANTEES.
I checked last nights stats. Kansas City now LEADS the league in DROPPED RECEPTIONS with 27.
Taylor Swift's latest heartthrob, Kelce, accounted for TWO DROPS himself last night.
The big difference in the NFL vs the other professional sports is the length of time they play. Very few NFL players are in the league for more than ten years. I believe the average is eight. The exception being place kickers and back up QBs. As we also know 50% of NFL players are bankrupt in 5 years after they retire from the league.
So, the reason the NFL owners can afford to pay players more is because the NFL is making so much money as a league. Which is also the reason why they continue to pay Roger Goodell so much money to run the NFL.
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