Three things about Brady.

He was the best. He is undeniably the greatest QB to play in the NFL. His stats, his wins, his ability to carry teams and play with different coaches, there’s no argument that Tom Brady wasn’t as good as everyone says he was.

He was driven to be the best. He wasn’t a first round draft pick. He was a backup who worked hard, earned his shot, and made the most out of his opportunity to prove himself. He worked harder, studied harder, and made the people around him better with his work ethic.

Winning was his only priority. Not fame or ego, not money or status, not partying or anything beyond scoring more points than his opponent in every game. He gave New England favorable contracts for years so they could sign great players around him, he kept his batshit political opinions mostly under his hat, and he avoided engaging in interpersonal player conflicts as much as possible.

So imagine that personality. Picture the guy that tries hard to always be the best, and delivers results. He was an insufferable douche to his teammates. He was willing to push the boundaries of the rules, and yes cheat, to win games. He didn’t care if somebody was going through hard times, or struggling with addiction, or abusive towards their loved ones. All that mattered to Tom Brady was winning. As a player, he was never fair, never moral, never kind, and any criticism rolled off his shoulders like water off a duck, because he kept winning.

There’s an object lesson in there about American capitalism, but that’s for another rant.

People expect Superman to be a good guy. But Brady isn’t Superman. Brady is Lex Luthor in a world without Superman. He just works hard, cheats often, and wins at all costs. And he won a lot.

Fans of the game love to watch him play, because he is objectively great. Teammates say he made them work harder and win more games, and some are grateful while others were annoyed. He doesn’t care about what they think either way.

But fans of teams that played against him, fans of teams that lost because he cheated, fans of players who display humanity and act as role models for how to be a person, how to be humble, how to be gracious, all of those people are sick and tired of hearing how great Tom Brady was.

Because there’s no argument that he wasn’t great. You can’t say Tom Brady only won because he cheated. He might not have won as much, but his squishy balls and stolen signals didn’t make the 40 yard passes for him. You can hate the man, but you have to respect his play.

So, take all of that into account, and think about his broadcasts. He’s not terrible. He’s not great, but he could be better. But some people loathe the guy. And sometimes he comes off as smug and arrogant. He talks down to listeners and co-commentators. He’s sometimes boring.

And he’s still the same guy, only now he isn’t the greatest at this. There are a lot of people who really enjoy tearing him down, because let’s be honest, he probably deserves it.