2017 NFL MVP: Tom Brady nets third award ahead of Patriots-Eagles Super Bowl
MINNEAPOLIS -- Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is hopeful that he can manage to shake off history and do something that hasn't been done since 1999: win the MVP award and win the Super Bowl in the same season. Brady netted his third career NFL MVP award at the NFL Honors show on Saturday night and thanked fans and teammates in a pre-recorded video message.
The choice was a fairly easy and obvious one, with Brady producing one of his finest seasons at the ripe old age of 40, leading the NFL in passing yards (4,577) and attempts (581). Brady completed more than 66 percent and threw 32 touchdowns to just eight interceptions.
It was an especially impressive effort for Brady considering he lost his trusty wideout Julian Edelman during the preseason with an ACL injury.
Brady became just the second quarterback in NFL history to throw for more than 4,000 passing yards after the age of 40, joining Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre, who orchestrated a similar season to Brady's with the Vikings in 2009. (Favre completed 68 percent of his passes, threw for 4,202 yards, 33 touchdowns and seven interceptions.)
But the list of 40-year-old quarterbacks to win MVP features just one name: Tom Brady.
Don't think for a second it wasn't a motivating factor for Brady this year, as the Patriots quarterback is fully aware of the limitations Father Time has put on even the best quarterbacks in history. Brady was exceptional this season, though, producing another stellar season and leading the Patriots to another AFC East title.
The Patriots under Brady make the difficult look routine -- they pile up divisional titles and are set to appear in their eighth Super Bowl since Brady joined the organization as a lowly sixth-round pick back in the 2000 NFL Draft.
Oddly, the Pats have never won a Super Bowl in a season when Brady was named MVP. He won award in 2007, as the Pats ran the table and went 16-0 in the regular season, but New England fell to the Giants in the Super Bowl in one of the biggest upsets in NFL history.
Brady also won the MVP in the 2010 season, but the Pats were upended by Rex Ryan and Mark Sanchez in the Divisional Round of the playoffs.
The Patriots quarterback actually helped keep the MVP-Super Bowl streak alive last season, when he led the Patriots back from a 28-3 victory over the Falcons and Matt Ryan, who narrowly edged out Brady for the 2016 NFL MVP award. The last quarterback to earn both honors? Kurt Warner, who took over the Rams offense for Trent Green and led St. Louis to a Super Bowl title in his first year under center.
And it was Brady who made the streak a thing in the first place; Warner was the NFL MVP in 2001, but the Rams lost to the Patriots in stunning fashion, with Bill Belichick and Brady kickstarting the Patriots dynasty with their first Super Bowl victory.
Now Brady gets to hope he breaks the streak with a win over the Eagles on Sunday.