Tom Brady: Man in the Arena (Part 1)

It’s not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat. 

Theodore Roosevelt

If high-level individual and team performance interests you, I recommend watching  Man in the Arena on ESPN+.  It’s a masterclass in confidence, mastery, and organizational alignment.  My original plan was to do an article on the totality of the series.  I couldn’t.  There were too many gems. 

Episode 1 gives us a peek behind the curtain on three things: the struggle and strife that accompanies high achievement; the path and mindset of Tom Brady, and the relationship of two elite competitors (Brady and Drew Bledsoe) as they pursue the same job.  

The Struggle and Strife of High-Achievement: 

As fans, we tend to see the jubilation that accompanies winning.  We see the smiles and hugs following the championship; however, we often fail to realize all of the struggle, sadness, and tough times that led to the victory.  In addition, even in the moments of joy there are people who are struggling.  It’s complicated.  

In episode 1, we see Bill Belichick’s brutally difficult decision to stick with Tom Brady after Drew Bledsoe recovers from an injury.  Bledsoe was the franchise quarterback who began the turnaround of the Patriots, even leading them to a superbowl appearance in 1997.  He was talented, tough and respected by his teammates.  He worked his tail off to come back from a major injury. Belichick made the tough call to stick with Brady.  To add to the drama, Brady gets hurt in the AFC championship game with the Patriots losing.  Bledsoe enters the game and leads the comeback win.  Once again, Belichick has to make a decision for the Superbowl: Brady or Bledsoe.  He chose Brady.  

 “As a leader, you have to make the tough decisions.  I have to make the best decision for everyone; the best decision for the team.”  Belichick.  

Almost 20 years later you can still see the hurt in Bledsoe. “I battled through a lot and the other guy was out there.”  The day after the big win he was skiing all alone when he finally broke down and cried..  He did everything right and still didn’t get the opportunity to play.  

The episode reminded me of how hard winning can be.  It’s never as joyous as it appears from afar. 

Mindset and Path of Tom Brady

At this point, it’s hard to argue that Tom Brady isn’t the best QB of all-time.  How does a 6th round draft pick who is limited athletically become  the G.O.A.T?  A few things jumped out to me.  

1. He has an innocent, almost naive approach.  He always believed he would be a starting QB in the NFL.  He didn’t see the 10-year 100 million contract granted to Bledsoe as being a terminal blow to his dream.  He has a boyish charm. He doesn’t obsess about things others do.  For example, after Bledsoe replaced him in the AFC championship game he said this, “I was happy for Drew, the team…hell, I was happy for me.  We were going to the Superbowl.”  
2. He worked while he waited.  Bledsoe said this about a young Brady, “He was extremely inquisitive.  Almost annoyingly so.”  When Brady wasn’t playing he was preparing for his moment.  When his number was called he was ready.  “The work I did in 2000, 2001 gave the coaches and my teammates confidence in me.”  
3. He’s an elite teammate.   Following the AFC championship game, Bledsoe said, “I just remember distinctly that Tommy was one of the guys who was most fired up for me.”  He had a healthy view of competition. “I never looked at it like me vs. Drew. If Coach would have gone with Drew I would have accepted it….but he didn’t.”  
4. He possesses unshakeable confidence.  How many 2nd year quarterbacks could handle the pressure of having been chosen to start over the undisputed team leader?  Brady could.  After Belichick’s controversial decision to go with Brady, he threw four touchdown passes.  He never blinked.  Brady says, “I always knew if they put me out on the field I’m not coming off.”  So cool, after the superbowl warmups he took a 10-minute nap in the locker room.  Veteran Willie McGinnis said this about Brady, “For a young guy, he just had this confidence.  Quiet confidence.  He was just zoomed in on what he had to do.  You could feel it.”  

The Brady/Bledsoe Relationship:

Oftentimes, the media and others want to make competition seem adversarial.  I have found the best of the best typically see competition as striving together.  I loved hearing the two of them reflect on what it was like.  Brady greatly admired Bledsoe- even looked up to him, “He was physically and mentally tough.  Just a special person and talent.  

I love the vulnerability of Bledsoe during the episode.  It hurt him then, and it hurts him now.  But, he said this, “If Tommy would have been an asshole it would have been hard, but he’s not.”   

Takeaways for You and I: 

I think every leader should watch this series.  There are so many transferable lessons.  First, success and leadership are hard. Decisions are a part of leadership, and with any decision, there’s a good chance someone will be negatively affected. It’s critical to have the awareness of others.  In addition, the leader must give herself grace as well.  

Second, we can learn a lot from Brady.  Of all of his gifts, I believe it’s his likeability that is his super power.  The way he interacts with coaches, teammates, etc. makes others want to play with/for him.  He’s not an asshole.  He’s not only about himself.  He works at a clip which instills confidence and belief in those around him.  What if we became intentional about treating our teammates like Brady?  

Finally, the healthy internal competition between Bledsoe and Brady is packed with lessons.  The way they both handled a difficult situation is admirable.  Years later, teammates still speak fondly of them.  Sure, we can get a short term win by doing things to enhance our position on the team, but it won’t scale in the long run.  

To end, I’d like to share my favorite quote from the episode: “The sustainable part of talent and potential is working hard.  There were always guys with more talent.  I had to make up ground by working hard”- Tom Brady.