Tom Brady gives surprising take on infamous scouting combine photo

When the average person looks back at their childhood pictures, they tend to cringe thinking back to that time when they were their younger, awkward selves. That remains true for Tom Brady when he reminisces on his now-infamous NFL Combine photo.

Tom Brady just wants his combine photo deleted 😂

(via @TomBrady) pic.twitter.com/BOCvLJ6KQu

— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) April 14, 2022

The picture shows a non-muscular, pale Michigan quarterback that was one team overlooking him away from being undrafted. His combine numbers impressed no one, but the New England Patriots still took a chance on the unproven Wolverines signal caller – and it turned out to be one of the greatest runs in the history of the NFL.

“It took a lot of time in the last 23 years to get a little bit better shape,” Brady joked on a recent episode of the Dan Patrick Show. “I was a college kid, I was coming out of college – oh my god, that wasn’t my finest moment – But I always joke about that picture. Like, no one else has a picture like that. Where’s Peyton Manning? He didn’t look great in those gray those gray shorts, either. But I just somehow have never see a picture of that.”

Patrick asked Brady if he’d pay top dollar to have that photo removed from the internet and the minds of NFL fans forever. Brady, however, admitted the photo keeps him humble when it makes its usual rounds on social media.

“I wouldn’t pay anything,” Brady revealed. “It’s a serves as a great reminder of where I’ve come from. At this point, I would say it’s pretty cool with it. It’s I look back and I think, ‘I remember that day.’ I remember rooming with Mark Bulger in an Indianapolis hotel room, and laughing about where we were at. We couldn’t imagine that we were both in this position. We’ve come a long way since then.”

Brady certainly has come a long way. In 22 NFL seasons, and at 44 years old, Brady had the Buccaneers in position for a Super Bowl repeat.

He miraculously threw for career-highs with 5,316 yards and 43 touchdowns. In the NFC Divisional Round, he nearly pulled off another miracle comeback. With his team down 27-3 halfway through the third, Brady led the charge to get the game tied with 42 seconds left on the clock.

Brady and the Buccaneers would ultimately lose to the eventual Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams – a tagline that Brady is seeking at least once more before riding off into retirement an eight-time champion.