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Lorraine Grohs Wants Tom Brady to Apologize for Lombardi Trophy Parade Toss
February 14, 2021
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback and seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady celebrated his latest Lombardi Trophy by throwing it to tight end Cameron Brate from boat to boat during the team's celebratory parade on the Hillsborough River last Wednesday:
That did not sit well with Lorraine Grohs, whose father, Greg Grohs, was the master silversmith at Tiffany & Co.when the organization crafted the first-ever Lombardi Trophy. And now she is asking Brady to apologize for his actions.
"I personally would like an apology, not just to me and my family and the other silversmiths but to the fans, all the football fans, the other team players," Grohs said, per Leslie DelasBour of Fox 4 Southwest Florida.
The award wasn't known as the Lombardi yet when the Green Bay Packers won the now-iconic trophy after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs 35-10 in Super Bowl I in 1967. But the trophy was soon named after Packers head coach Vince Lombardi, who won the first two Super Bowls with Green Bay in 1967 and 1968.
"It just upset me that this trophy was disgraced and disrespected by being thrown as if it was a real football," Grohs added.
She also noted how much work goes into making the trophy.
"I have a big history of this trophy being made by my father and it's such an honor and I know all the craftsmen that made it when my dad was there also at Tiffany's and it takes a lot of hard work.
"I've seen this trophy being made at the factory at Tiffany's and it's a beautiful trophy. My father had to chisel the seams, he had to chisel the seams by hand. There is a newspaper article that shows him working on that trophy. The ball is hand-formed and the base is as well."
The Lombardi has been through some adventures in the past few years. Of note, Brady's Bucs teammate (and ex-New England Patriots co-star) Rob Gronkowski dented the trophy after using it as a bat and bunting a pitch from wideout Julian Edelman before a Boston Red Sox game in April 2019:
The trophy was never repaired. Thankfully, the Bucs hardware at least went unscathed after Brate made a clean catch.