🏈 TB12’s Age Stopped Mattering Long Ago

The longer Brady plays and the older he gets, the less it becomes a talking point. [View in browser]( [FOX SPORTS INSIDER WITH MARTIN ROGERS] In today’s FOX Sports Insider with Martin Rogers: Scrutinizing Tom Brady’s age is old news, he showed NFL fans that long ago ... we preview Week 9 of USFL play ... and more! Tom Brady’s age started becoming a topic, in that kind of wink-wink-nudge-nudge way that’s used to suggest a pro football player might not have long left in his career, in June. June 14, to be precise … of 2011. The first mention I was able to find that seriously spoke of the end of the road potentially approaching for Brady came on that very date, a Bleacher Report story that took a stab at predicting what the remainder of the then-33-year-old’s career might look like. It was a well-reasoned piece that looked closely at a number of factors and identified the end of his deal at the time with the New England Patriots as being a critical juncture. "After that, all bets are off," the article read. "Brady will be 37 (38 by the 2015 season) and more banged up, and history doesn't smile upon quarterbacks of that age. He could eke out another productive year, like Kurt Warner did at 38 in 2009, but the (John) Elways and Brett Favres are never the norm to base judgment on." Obviously, time has shown virtually every crystal-ball prediction of the story, and many others like it, to be wildly wide of the mark, but the writer shouldn’t feel bad. No one thought a QB could still excel in the NFL deep into his 40s, because no one had achieved it and few wanted to try. The idea was considered faintly preposterous. Similarly, no one thought the concept of a QB winning seven Super Bowls was anything short of absurd. Brady has made fools out of all of us at some point. Because if you’re claiming you’ve long envisioned this – a 2022 season approaching in which he’s the starter for the Super Bowl second-favorite Tampa Bay Buccaneers (+750 with FOX Bet) – you’re being economical with the truth. We’ve gotten this far without mentioning Brady’s current age because there comes a point in everyone’s life when it becomes kind of rude to do so, but given that this column is partly about how old he is, it's unavoidable now. He’s 44, soon to be 45, which hopefully Tom won’t mind us pointing out, given how it's history-making and all. Yet the most interesting part of this might be that the longer Brady plays, and the older he gets, the less it becomes a talking point. He has, quite simply, worn down the doubters. To read the full story, [click here.]( [STORY IMAGE 1] [IN OTHER WORDS] - Boston finally broke through when its star duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown figured out how to be facilitators and not just finishers, [writes Yaron Weitzman.]( - One playoff berth is still up for grabs as we hit Week 9 of the USFL season. [Here is everything you need to know]( ahead of this weekend’s matchups. - With the USMNT striker job still wide open, Jesús Ferreira and Haji Wright are getting their chance in June camp, [writes Laken Litman.]( [VIEWER'S GUIDE] Golden State Warriors at Boston Celtics (ABC, 9 p.m. ET) The Warriors try and avoid falling into a 3-1 deficit in Game 4 of the NBA Finals. Netherlands vs. Poland (Saturday on FS2, 2:45 p.m. ET) UEFA Nations League play continues throughout the weekend. Chicago Cubs at NY Yankees (Saturday on FOX, 7:15 p.m. ET) Two of MLB’s most storied franchises face off in the Big Apple in the third game of the series. Tampa Bay Bandits at New Orleans Breakers (Sunday on FOX, 4 p.m. ET) The Breakers could clinch their inaugural USFL playoff spot with a win over the Bandits. [BET OF THE DAY] [BET OF THE DAY] Odds provided by [FOX Bet]( Creative Minister to win Belmont Stakes outright (6-1) From FOX Sports Horse Racing Analyst Andy Serling: The only horse to race on the days of all three Triple Crown races, winning an allowance at Churchill Downs on Derby Day before finishing third in the Preakness. He has improved with each start in his four-race career, possesses enough early speed to sit close to We the People, and with another forward move, could well be the horse to beat. His trainer, Kenny McPeek, upset the Belmont Stakes 20 years ago with Sarava at 70-1. At anywhere near his current 6-1 price, he is my choice to win the Belmont. 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