Tom Brady Stayed ‘Positive’ Despite ‘Negativity’ During Final Season, Says Former Teammate

Kyle Rudolph had nothing but great things to say about his time with Tom Brady at quarterback.

As the Patriots celebrated Brady’s career in New England on Sunday, Rudolph, 33, recalled in an interview with NBC Sports how Brady led his final season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers amid his public divorce from Gisele Bündchen.

“If anyone had the right to be a jerk sometimes, it was Tom. He never was. Imagine how tough a year it was for him off the field,” he said.

Kyle Rudolph and Tom Brady.

Julio Aguilar/Getty; Jon Kopaloff/Getty

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“The most amazing thing to me was that with all the negativity surrounding his life outside of football, he never brought that into the building,” Rudolph said later, referring to Brady’s divorce. “Always positive. I didn’t think it would be possible to be more impressed with Tom when I came into the team. But I am.”

Rudolph, 33, called Brady a “great teammate” who would motivate him to stay in good spirits, even when he wasn’t scoring as many points as he would have liked. “He would put his arm around me and keep me positive. He made me a better football player,” the tight end said.

He then revealed that the football that Brady threw for his final touchdown pass is now in his office in Tampa.

Tom Brady.

Mike Ehrmann/Getty

“So here we are in Atlanta, the last regular season game of Tom’s career. And on the first drive of the game, I’m on the field and he throws me the last TD pass of his career, his regular season career. It was a big catch for me — my 50th NFL touchdown. That ball is painted and it’s right in my office here in Tampa. It means a lot to me,” he said.

Rudolph rounded off the discussion by noting that Brady, 46, is admirable for never taking his burden on the field.

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“I went to the Bucs to try to win a championship with the best QB ever, who wanted me in Tampa. I went in with expectations and then never played. “I’ve been a healthy person for most of the year and, honestly, it’s been really disappointing,” Rudolph said Sunday.

Speaking of Brady, he called his experience with him “amazing.”

“First, the way he treated people. The way he treated the Glazer family [Bucs owners] is exactly the way he handled the janitor at 6:30 at night when he and maybe one or two other guys were the last players in the building,” Rudolph said of the famed quarterback.

He was also impressed with the way Brady interacted with his teammates.

Tom Brady.

Getty Images / Andy Lyons

“Secondly, the way he treated his teammates,” the Ohio native explained before recalling how others viewed the former professional athlete.

“Tom had an empty locker next to him. “I’d look over there and every day guys would put in helmets, jerseys, pictures, footballs, whatever they wanted Tom to sign,” he said.

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“There would be notes on things, a sticky note on a soccer ball — ‘Sign this for Jimmy, it’s his birthday.’ At the end of the day, almost every day, he would sit there and sign everything,” Rudolph said.

On Sunday, the New England Patriots honored Brady during halftime of their home game. It was the first time since 1999 that the newly retired former NFL star was not under contract with a football team.

“I’ve talked a lot about how lucky I feel to have spent my life surrounded by such amazing people. Yesterday was just another reminder of that,” Brady said on Instagram Monday after capturing the moment.

“Coming back to New England to celebrate what WE accomplished was so special and it’s a day I’ll never forget,” he added after retiring his No. 12 jersey.

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