The China Mail - Patriots unveil statue honoring iconic quarterback Tom Brady

The ceremony revealed a towering bronze image of Brady with one arm aloft in triumph, the likeness mounted on a six-sided base in a nod to his championship seasons with the Pats.

The total 17-foot height marks the 17 AFC East division titles that Brady won as a starting quarterback.

He went on to win a seventh Super Bowl title with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but he'll be forever linked to the Patriots -- a fact that team owner Robert Kraft acknowledged when Brady was inducted into the team's Hall of fame last year.

"This is quite overwhelming to me," the 48-year-old said. "I feel extremely honored, deeply grateful and, if I'm being honest, kind of old.

"I'm also a little surprised, because usually they don't build statues until you're really old, like (Mike) Vrabel and (Tedy) Bruschi.

Vrabel, a former Brady teammate now in his first season as head coach of the Pats, was at the ceremony.

Brady, who was taken 199th overall in the 2000 draft and was the fourth-string quarterback before emerging as a superstar, poked a little fun at himself, too.

"I never dreamed I'd be standing here two and a half decades later made of bronze and frozen in time," he said.

"It actually feels pretty appropriate given my 40-yard dash time."

Brady's statue was revealed before the Patriots' pre-season game against the Washington Commanders. It stands in the plaza outside the Patriots Hall of Fame.

Across 23 seasons, three with Tampa Bay, Brady started in 333 regular season matchups and 48 playoff games -– the most of any NFL quarterback –- with 278 wins overall, another league record unlikely to be touched for years to come.

The three-time NFL Most Valuable Player holds the league records for completions (7,753), pass attempts (12,050), passing yards (89,214) and touchdown passes (649).

"Tom Brady's journey proves that it's not where you start, but where you finish that counts," Patriots owner Robert Kraft said in remarks opening the ceremony.

"Tom wasn't just the face of our franchise, he was the heartbeat. It's hard to overstate what Tom accomplished. He didn't just rewrite the record books, he practically authored a new volume. This statue ensures his legacy will be preserved for generations to come."

J.Liv--ThChM