Media Day madness no biggie for Brady

INDIANAPOLIS -- It is safe to say Johnny Unitas and Otto Graham never faced the scene that awaited Tom Brady on Media Day at Super Bowl 46.

Same goes for Bart Starr, Terry Bradshaw, Dan Marino and Joe Montana.

Perhaps John Elway and Brett Favre had slightly similar experiences. But Brady is in a different place than the rest of the greats to play his position in terms of the media exposure he must face on a daily basis and, of course, when he arrives at the NFL's title game.

Cellphones, Twitter and entertainment networks firing non-football questions weren't part of the Super Bowl experience until only recently. Brady has grown up in the NFL simultaneously with the rush of social media our world has been swept up in.

On Tuesday he faced a throng of media 20 rows deep all crushed around the mini-stage he sat atop. Boom microphones, TV cameras, flashes and greedy reporters all pressed as close to Brady as possible to ask him questions actually dealing with football to those focusing on which hairstyle he's preferred in his career.

"It's hair. You have to do something with it," laughed Brady, while displaying the ease he has developed in his relationship with the media. "I have seniority on this team so I get to wear it any way I want to."

There's no anger or shock with Brady when it comes to the media. He's seen it all from having reporters camp out in front of his wife Gisele Bundchen's New York apartment when they were dating to gossip about his relationship and love child with model/actress Bridget Moynahan.

Brady has long been in the conversation for greatest quarterback to ever play the game and with three Super Bowl wins in four tries and a potential fourth win this weekend he's on the verge of shutting down the topic.

A win Sunday over the New York Giants and Brady would join Bradshaw and Montana as the only four-time Super Bowl winning QBs. He's got the stats, he's got the rings and, more importantly, he's done it in a more-difficult era than anyone else.

Brady's 16 post-season wins are tied with Montana for most playoffs wins by a quarterback in NFL history and his 1,001 passing yards is the fourth-most in Super Bowl career passing yards.

Brady (5,009) needs 381 passing yards to surpass Peyton Manning (5,389) for third-most post-season passing yards in NFL history. With 36 passing TDs, Brady needs four more to join Montana (45) and Favre (44) as the only QBs to reach 40 post-season TD passes all-time. Brady's 16-5 (.762) playoff record is the best post-season record as a starting quarterback in NFL history. The two-time Super Bowl MVP will tie Elway (5) for most Super Bowl appearances by quarterback in NFL history on Sunday.

The game is bigger, faster and better coached than ever before. Brady has rode the wave of technology both on and off the field and handled it all with aplomb. Maybe because he welcomes all challenges.

"I know this (Media Day) is a big part of the week, dealing with a lot of requests, not just media requests but also family requests. But ultimately, when that game is kicked off, you'd better be ready to play," said Brady.

Losing on Sunday won't define Brady and he says he's not into comparisons or his ranking as a quarterback. Without a fourth win he can't unequivocally be called the greatest. But that's not what's motivating him this week or any week.

"The winning, the things that go along with winning, those are really special memories that you have with a lot of close friends," he says. "It's a great feeling."

A win Sunday and it will be the greatest feeling of all -- in every sense and in every meaning.

gary.lawless@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @garylawless

Gary Lawless, Winnipeg Free Press

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition February 1, 2012 D1