Tom Brady Jokes He Feels ‘Kind of Old’ as His Statue Is Unveiled by the Patriots Outside of Gillette Stadium

Tom Brady is being honored for being an unshakable force on the field — fittingly with a 12-foot-tall bronze statue now standing proud outside of Gillette Stadium.

The seven-time Super Bowl champion, 48, was immortalized at Patriot Place Plaza on Saturday, Aug. 9, when the New England Patriots organization and CEO Robert Kraft unveiled a towering statue in his likeness ahead of the team’s 2025 home game against the Washington Commanders. Kraft previously announced the honor during Brady’s 2024 Patriots Hall of Fame induction ceremony, before making it official on Saturday.

After Kraft, 84, spoke about his franchise’s former star quarterback, he and Brady stood up to watch the unveiling, as flames shot up behind the statue. Brady then examined the statue from the back, gave Kraft a hug and shared some remarks with fans in attendance.

“Right now, I feel extremely honored, deeply grateful and, if I’m being honest, kind of old,” Brady joked during the unveiling ceremony outside of the stadium that was his home turf from 2000 to 2019.

“I’m also a little surprised because usually they don’t build statues until you’re really old… It’s not every day you get a statue, at least not one like this,” he continued. “Seeing myself as a statue isn’t something I could’ve ever imagined growing up. When I was drafted, I just hoped to make the team. I never dreamed I’d be standing here two-and-a-half decades later, made of bronze and frozen in time. It actually feels pretty appropriate, given my 40-yard dash time.”

Brady called the moment an “incredible honor,” joking that it marked the “first time” in his life that Boston sportswriters would describe him as “chiseled.”

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He then thanked the Kraft family for their “leadership,” his former teammates and coaches for their efforts, and his family — which includes children Jack, 17, Benjamin, 15, and Vivian, 12. “I’m sure most of them are mumbling under their breath right now, ‘Yeah, we love you, but a statue?’ ” Brady joked.

“In the end, this statue isn’t just for Pats fans,” he later said. “It’ll also give Jets fans something to throw beers at as they leave the stadium every year. Probably in the second quarter. Maybe the third.”

Brady then said that, ultimately, the statue wasn’t about just “one guy,” but rather a “team and a commitment to being great together.”

He continued: “To think that a kid from California might someday travel here to this plaza, stop, gaze at this work of art and say, ‘Who the hell is that guy?’ I’ve said this before, but I want to say it again: I’m humbled and honored to have been part of this organization for 20 incredible years. You guys shaped my life and the life of my family. And for that, I’m forever grateful.”

As for Kraft, the team’s owner called the statue a way to “immortalize” a man he considered to be the “greatest NFL player of all time.”

“Tom was the 199th draft pick, who not only transformed himself into the greatest quarterback the league has ever seen, but also helped transform the Patriots into a 20-year dynasty,” Kraft said. “He demanded excellence of himself and made everyone around him better. Tom wasn’t just the face of our franchise, he was the true heartbeat.”

Brady played for the Patriots for two decades after being selected 199th in the 2000 NFL Draft. Between then and 2020 — when he left New England for free agency and joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — Brady earned six Super Bowl championships with the franchise. He later led the Bucs to a Super Bowl of their own in 2021, before his retirement in 2023.

According to the Patriots organization, the newest addition to Gillette Stadium makes Brady the first player in franchise history to earn the honor of having a bronze statue standing at the location. Per ESPN, the statue was created by a local sculptor and its granite base was quarried in Vermont.