Some people disputed Tom Brady‘s statement that there is “a lot of mediocrity” in the NFL nowadays and expressed confusion.
Among them was former NFL quarterback Alex Smith, who was at odds with his former adversary. Brady “hasn’t been retired that long,” Smith noted, and he practically won a Super Bowl in the midst of the mediocrity. In an interview with presenters Jim Gray and Larry Fitzgerald for his “Let’s Go” podcast, Brady chose to reiterate and broaden his initial remarks.
Brady said in one of his remarks that while quarterbacks aren’t developing such abilities, coaches don’t completely trust them to call and adjust plays or analyze defensive coverages. Brady said
“Coaches aren’t really trusting quarterbacks much — they’re trying to control the game from the sideline,” “When you try to control the game from the sideline, you don’t have the answer for everything that’s happening on the field.”
“I just don’t see as much of that in the NFL,” “There’s a lot less time that people are spending on it. That’s just the reality. When I started, there was a lot more time we spent on it. Over those years, I developed a lot of those tools in my arsenal to get us into the best play.” “That’s what Peyton [Manning] and I did. That’s what Drew Brees and I did. That’s what Philip Rivers and I did. That’s what Aaron Rodgers did.”
The seven-time Super Bowl winner went on to say that players do not completely understand one another’s responsibilities, including route running, blocking, picking up blitzes, and other tasks.
According to Brady, teams are under so much pressure to win fast that, before the former players have an opportunity to gel, they start rebuilding the entire team.
“But it’s hard, like I said, because we’re firing people every five minutes — offensive coordinators, play-callers,” Brady said. “‘Let’s promote that guy. Let’s call the GA up and let him call some plays.’
“This is just the reality of the way the sport is, because there’s so much pressure to get it right. In an effort to get it right, people may get it more wrong.” “I think the point is, you want to see the game continue to grow and evolve,” Brady said. “That means better coaching, better quarterback play, and better defensive play-calling. I think a big difference, too, is the lack of time that coaches have with players, coaches have together in the building.”
