Nobody will ever wear No. 12 for the Patriots ever again.
Owner Robert Kraft made the announcement Wednesday night at Gillette Stadium during Brady’s star-studded induction into the Patriots Hall of Fame.
“There’s only one iconic number that will always represent Tom Brady,” Kraft said. “Tonight, I promise it will never be worn again as the No. 12 is now officially retired.”
The Gillette Stadium audience, which was expected to top 55,000, erupted with applause as a teary-eyed Brady looked on.
Kraft also announced another honor for Brady, telling the audience that the team commissioned a local sculptor to create a “larger than life bronze statue” of the legendary quarterback.
“Tom’s figure will stand 12 feet tall and will be unveiled during this ’24 season,” Kraft added.
“It will stand alone in the Plaza outside the Hall of Fame to symbolize his position as not just the greatest in franchise history but the greatest in NFL history.”
Brady, who retired from the NFL following the 2022 campaign, spent the first 20 seasons of his career in New England, authoring one of the greatest careers in sports history.
The 46-year-old won six of his seven career Super Bowls with the Patriots while attaining nearly every offensive record for a quarterback imaginable.
For the Patriots, Brady threw for 74,571 yards and 541 touchdowns, ranking as the most for a single team in league history, according to ESPN.
Brady’s 135 wins and 304 touchdowns at Gillette Stadium, which includes the postseason, is a record by a quarterback at a single stadium.
Brady also combined with longtime head coach Bill Belichick to appear in a record nine Super Bowls, which included losses to the Giants in 2007 and 2012.
“Thank you for all you’ve done for us, thank you for all you’ve done for me and thank you for the model example you’ve been for 20 years,” Belichick said during the event.
Brady returned the sentiment to his former head coach during his speech moments later, as he donned his red Patriots Hall of Fame sports jacket.
“To Coach Belichick, thank you for your tireless commitment to develop and push me to my very best,” Brady said. “It wasn’t me, it wasn’t you. It was us.”
During his emotional speech, Brady thanked numerous former teammates and family members but saved his biggest regard for Kraft.
“In the year 2000, I was drafted as an immature 23-year-old kid,” Brady said. “20 years later, I left as a much older 43-year-old kid. But in that time, I was taken in by a family who loved me as a son and embraced by family as their own.”
Since his retirement, Brady has remained active in football as he vies for an ownership stake with the Raiders and prepares to join the Fox broadcast booth for the upcoming season.
But even with all of that, he concluded his speech with a definitive statement about his NFL legacy.
“I am Tom Brady and I am a Patriot,” he said.
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