Tom Brady Says 'Brady vs. Belichick' Debate Is 'Such a Stupid Conversation'

Tom Brady doesn't have time for anyone trying to debate whether he or Bill Belichick was more responsible for the New England Patriots' success during their 20 seasons together.

On the latest episode of his Let's Go! podcast (h/t Zack Cox of NESN.com), Brady called the debate a "stupid conversation" that misses the point of what a quarterback and head coach do together:

"In my view, people were always trying to pull us apart. I don't think we ever felt like that with each other. We never were trying to pull each other apart. We actually were always trying to go in the same direction. I think when we were in New England for 20 years together, you know, they get tired of writing the same story. So once they write all the nice things and championships and this and then they just start going, 'Well, this works, let's start trying to divide them.' I never really appreciated those ways that people would try to do that."

Reports of a strained relationship between Brady and Belichick were persistent for two years before Brady left the Patriots.

ESPN's Seth Wickersham reported in 2018 on simmering tensions involving how much access was given to Alex Guerrero, Brady's friend and personal trainer, and Jimmy Garoppolo's presence on the Patriots roster.

According to Wickersham, Belichick revoked Guerrero's access to the Patriots' facilities and players because he wasn't an employee of the team. Robert Kraft was also said to have put pressure on Belichick to trade Garoppolo and continue building around Brady.

New England dealt Garoppolo to the San Francisco 49ers in 2017. The Patriots reached the Super Bowl after Wickersham's report came out, losing 41-33 to the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Patriots would get back to the big game the following year, defeating the Los Angeles Rams for what turned out to be the final championship of the Brady-Belichick era.

According to Wickersham's book It's Better to Be Feared, Brady was telling people in 2017 he no longer wanted to be in New England because he wanted to have greater input on roster decisions after taking team-friendly deals to save money against the cap for years:

"Brady was tired of taking team-friendly deals with no input into how the money saved was spent -- and still wanted a long-term contractual commitment. Belichick told associates that every organizational decision now was in support of Brady, geared toward pleasing him and making him successful -- and that Kraft meddled with the team, sometimes with opinions, sometimes with restrictive budgets."

Brady signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a free agent in 2020. He led the franchise to a Super Bowl in his first season.

The Patriots have struggled to replace Brady. They made the playoffs in 2021 after drafting Mac Jones, but they have yet to win a postseason game. Belichick is 25-25 in three seasons without Brady.

After taking over as New England's starting quarterback early in the 2001 season, Brady led the franchise to a 219-64 record in the regular season with 17 division titles, nine AFC championships and six Super Bowl titles.

Brady announced his retirement from the NFL last week after 23 seasons.