Cornerback TJ Carrie doesn’t remember an NFL without Tom Brady, and most of his Browns teammates can relate.
The 11 Browns defenders expected to start against Brady and the New England Patriots on Sunday combine for an average age of 25. Brady is 42 and still the king of the league.
“He’s definitely set a big legacy and changed the game of football,” Carrie, 29, said.
For Cleveland (2-4) to come off its bye and upset the Patriots (7-0), it will likely need to play its best game against the quarterback many consider the best of all time.
“Tom is as good as he ever has been,” Browns Coach Freddie Kitchens said.
With the Patriots’ 13-3 triumph over the Los Angeles Rams, Brady finished last season by improving to 6-3 in Super Bowls. He’s the only player with six Super Bowl titles. His 244 victories (against 70 losses) in the regular season and playoffs are more than any other player.
Brady has been consistently elite.
“He knows the weaknesses within the defense,” Carrie said. “He picks his matchups that he likes. They go out there and execute. They don’t beat themselves with penalties.”
Still, everybody wants to make a mark against Brady.
“I definitely want a Brady ball. I need one of those interceptions,” safety Jermaine Whitehead said.
A three-time MVP and 14-time Pro Bowler, Brady has completed 65.9 percent of his passes this season for 1,992 yards and 11 touchdowns with four interceptions. The Patriots’ 175-point differential is the largest in the NFL through seven games since 1920, per the Elias Sports Bureau, and the only tight game they played was their 16-10 road win over the Buffalo Bills on Sept. 29.
Not bad for a QB in his 20th season.
“He knows how to take care of his body,” defensive end Myles Garrett said. “He knows the game as well as anybody in the league.”
Defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson has his own theory about Brady’s longevity.
“The league’s softer now,” Richardson said. “It is what it is. Can’t hit quarterbacks. I’d play until I’m 52. For real.
“If quarterbacks were still getting tattooed (like) back in the day, a lot of guys wouldn’t still be in the league today at 40.”
Still, Richardson conceded Brady’s knowledge and processing speed allow him to avoid hits.
“He knows where he’s going with the football before the football is snapped, or he has an idea,” Richardson said.
The recipe for defeating Brady is consistently reaching him with a pass rush.
“You’ve got to get him off the spot because if he’s allowed to just sit back in that pocket, he can pick you apart,” Carrie said. “You want to try to frustrate him and get him out of his comfort zone.”
BILL BELICHICK will go for his 300th career win against the Browns on Sunday. His first career win – in Week 2 of the 1991 season as coach of the Browns – was a 20-0 shutout of the New England Patriots.
New England’s coach at the time? Old Town native Dick MacPherson.
CLEVELAND COACH Freddie Kitchens played quarterback for Alabama when the No. 16 Crimson Tide defeated No. 15 Michigan 17-14 in the Outback Bowl on Jan. 1, 1997.
Tom Brady was the redshirt freshman backup for Brian Griese, who went all the way at quarterback for the Wolverines that day.
JETS: New York released guard Kelechi Osemele a day after he had shoulder surgery without the team’s approval.
Osemele had surgery Friday in Boston to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. The Jets were made aware of Osemele’s plan to have surgery, but because he was not with the team and the surgery wasn’t approved, it was considered an “unexcused absence.”
FALCONS: Atlanta said quarterback Matt Ryan won’t play against Seattle, ending his 10-year streak of consecutive starts. Ryan sprained his right ankle last week in a loss to the Los Angeles Rams.
He had limited participation in Friday’s practice and was listed as questionable on the team’s injury report. The Falcons announced Saturday that Ryan won’t play in Sunday’s game.
Veteran Matt Schaub will make his first start since 2015 with Baltimore.
SAINTS: According to numerous reports, quarterback Drew Brees will return to the New Orleans lineup Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals.
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