Tom Brady Signed ‘Official Podium’ Super Bowl XLIX Hat

Offered in this lot is a Super Bowl XLIX Championship Hat, issued to and signed by Tom Brady.

On February 1, 2015, after another successful season for Brady, the New England Patriots faced the reigning champion Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX. Over the course of the regular season, Brady accumulated more than 4,000 passing yards for the 7th time in his career and became only the 6th quarterback in NFL history to reach 50,000 passing yards.  Entering the playoffs, both Brady’s Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks, led by third-year man Russell Wilson and veteran running back Marshawn Lynch, held 12-4 regular season records and survived close shaves on their way to the big game. The Patriots endured a 35-31 thriller in the divisional round against the Baltimore Ravens, while the defending champions had to come from 16 points down in the NFC Championship game against Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers to win in overtime. The stage was set for an epic duel, and the matchup lived up to the hype. The Patriots of course emerged as the victors, winning 28-24, the fourth Super Bowl title in franchise history.

Tom was awarded his third Super Bowl MVP on the podium, further solidifying his status as one of the greatest of all time and bringing him level with Joe Montana in Super Bowl wins and MVPs. Brady would go on to win the most Super Bowls and Super Bowl MVPs of any player in NFL history and also has more Super Bowls than any franchise in NFL history. In his interview with Dan Patrick, Brady gave much of the credit to his teammates, however without his poise at the helm of the offense in the face of adversity, it is doubtful that the Patriots would have become the first team in NFL history to overcome a 10-point fourth quarter deficit in the Super Bowl.

The lot is accompanied by a letter of provenance from Tom Brady.

Going Deeper - Tom Brady

Humble Beginnings and the Road to Greatness

There are only a few athletes who are near-universally accepted as the greatest in their sport: Tiger Woods, Muhammad Ali, Wayne Gretzky, Babe Ruth—and Tom Brady.

While most of them entered their respective sports as highly touted prospects, Brady’s journey began as an unassuming sixth-round pick of the New England Patriots in the 2000 NFL Draft.

During ESPN’s segment covering the 199th pick, resident draft expert Mel Kiper remarked, “[Brady] throws a very catchable ball.” Watching the segment today, there is little evidence Kiper realized he was talking about the player who threw perhaps the most catchable ball in the history of the sport. Brady holds the record for the most passing yards, completions, and touchdowns in NFL history.

Kiper would go on to talk about Brady’s perceived weaknesses: “The question is going to be mobility. He only runs a 5.25 forty [yard dash] and of course when you have those edge pass rushers, you have to avoid the initial defensive end, the initial pass rusher. Can he do that at the pro level?”

Brady’s seemingly pedestrian 2000 NFL Combine performance (his 40-yard dash was on par with some offensive lineman) and the now infamous photo of his less-than-strapping, unathletic physique, have become part of the lore for what many consider the best draft pick of all time. Every year come draft time, that photo of Brady gets circulated through social media as teams hope to strike gold again as the New England Patriots did in the year 2000.

Brady would acknowledge as much when he posted the picture to his personal Instagram years later, with the caption:

“19 years ago today the @patriots took a chance on the guy in this photo: Me (199) 😂. Thank you to EVERYONE who’s helped me to prove them right! PS: Did they stop taking these photos after mine?? 🤣🤣”

What followed, of course, is legend. Brady would go on to join the Patriots as their fourth-string quarterback and was, by no means, a lock to even make the team. By the following season however, he was thrust into a starting role after veteran starter Drew Bledsoe sustained an injury in week two. That opportunity was all Brady needed. He would lead the Patriots to a 20-17 victory in Super Bowl XXXVI that year and become the youngest Super Bowl MVP.

Brady would win five more Super Bowls with the New England Patriots as well as one with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on his way to becoming the best quarterback, and arguably player, in the history of the sport. No NFL player has ever come close to being as good for as long. If you split Brady’s career into segments, you would find two, maybe even three, Hall of Fame resumes.

In 2024, Brady began the next chapter of his storied career in a new arena as the primary color commentator for FOX’s Sunday NFL broadcasts.