The 2023 Patriots might get overshadowed by Tom Brady in their season opener Sunday at Gillette Stadium.
The Patriots are set to honor Brady on Sunday when they take on the reigning NFC champion Eagles. Brady revealed how he’s feeling ahead of the ceremony on his podcast, “Let’s Go!”
“A lot of gratitude,” Brady said. “I had two decades of incredible life-changing, altering experiences. I have so many memories from my time there. Memories with people there. I’m creating a new memory with people there. To go back to that stadium and bring my kids and my family in a different way. I’ve not been to that stadium in this way ever. I went there as a player. I went there once as a competitor. And now I’m going to go there really as a fan and then I’m going to be there in the future as a broadcaster. …
“I don’t think it’s going to be hard to be a fan though. I love the sport, and I love the Patriots. So, going up there to see a lot of my friends and family is going to be a great experience.”
Brady is taking a year off before starting his broadcasting career at FOX Sports.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion quarterback said Patriots owner Robert Kraft has been “very welcoming” ahead of the return.
“I’m going to have a lot of great friends there,” Brady said. “I’ve had so many people text me and say they’re excited to see me come back. So, it’ll be really a special reunion. I’m excited to get there. I haven’t been back much. Just by the way things work out, your life kind of takes you in different directions. They’ve got a really tough game against the Eagles, they were in the Super Bowl last year.”
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has been very complimentary of Brady ahead of the Week 1 ceremony. That continued Monday during a video conference call when Belichick was asked what it will be like to have the future Pro Football Hall of Famer back in the building.
“It will be great to see Tom,” Belichick said. “Tom has meant so much to this team, this organization and me personally. It was a tremendous experience to be able to coach him and for us to share the things that we shared together, a lot of player-coach relationship. Certainly recognizing him for all of his great achievements here is more than appropriate. I look forward to seeing him and glad that he’s getting a lot of recognition and appreciation for that because he certainly deserves it.”
Brady also revealed on his podcast that his son, Benny, will be playing football this year and wants to be a tight end like ex-Patriot Rob Gronkowski. Brady and Gronkowski will be joined on FOX Sports by another former Patriot, Julian Edelman, who signed on with the network this summer.