Schefter: Patriots to 'Briefly Acknowledge' Tom Brady If He Breaks Drew Brees' Record

The New England Patriots will "briefly acknowledge" Tom Brady's accomplishment if he sets the all-time passing yards record Sunday night against them, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback is 68 yards shy of breaking Drew Brees' record of 80,358 career passing yards.

Per Schefter, the Patriots will pause the game to recognize the feat, but they won't completely stop the action for a ceremony.

Sunday night's matchup represents Brady's first game against the Patriots since leaving for the Buccaneers in 2020 free agency. He spent the first 20 years of his career in New England, with 74,571 of his passing yards coming with his first team.

Though some fans might still be angry about Brady leaving in free agency, the Patriots reportedly plan to have some tribute for him upon his return to Foxborough, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.

After all, it's difficult to completely ignore the quarterback who led the team to six Super Bowl titles.

However, the organization doesn't plan to mirror the hoopla following Brees' record-breaking moment in 2018. The Saints star passed the record originally set by Peyton Manning with a touchdown pass in a Monday Night Football game in front of his home crowd at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The NFL stopped the game, allowing Brees to celebrate with his wife and kids on the field.

Brees and Brady spent the past few years separating themselves from the rest of the field in the record books and are each well ahead of Manning's prior mark of 71,940. Brady (591) and Brees (571) are also comfortably ahead of Manning's old touchdown record of 539.

With Brees retiring last offseason, Brady can now pull away from Brees for good in each category. The 44-year-old is averaging 362.3 passing yards per game this season and currently leads the NFL with 10 touchdown passes.