š° NEWS FLASH: Tom Brady opens up about the iconic turkey chomp clip that still stirs debate across the NFL world ā”. DH
The New England Patriots Hall of Famer reminisced on when he ate some turkey after playing on Thanksgiving back in 2012.
Tom Brady didn’t always play on Thanksgiving with the New England Patriots, but when he did, some of those memories stuck out to him.
As part of his weekly “Story Time With Tom” series with FOX, the legendary quarterback sat down to discuss his favorite moments playing on the holiday, including a now-viral turkey bite after knocking off the New York Jets in 2012.
The Butt Fumble, Then Turkey
The Patriots ā led by Brady, who threw for 323 yards and three touchdowns ā went into MetLife Stadium and bullied the Jets into submission. The vast majority of people don’t remember the final score (49-19), but some of the game’s iconic moments are still engraved into today’s digital lexicon. The Butt Fumble sticks out as the main subject point, but after the game, Brady joined his teammates in a turkey feast on the field.
“There was a great clip of me and Vince Wilfork (and Steve Gregory),” Brady said. “We played the Jets on a Thursday night and they gave me the turkey leg. So when they gave me the turkey leg, I’m looking at it and I can feel that it’s kind of a cold turkey leg.”
Brady then broke down how he went about trying the bite into the cold bird, giving it what he called a “chintzy little bite.” He then juxtaposed how his massive defensive tackle ate the bird just to his left.
“Of course, Vince went all in like it was a chicken wing,” Brady said. “Vince was like slipping that thing into his mouth and devouring it. I was a little apprehensive about what I was biting into.”
Tom Brady Isn’t New To Thanksgiving Football
The Patriots’ win over New York in 2012 wasn’t the only time Brady suited up for the team on Thanksgiving. His first-ever game action was against the Detroit Lions, where the eventual Hall of Famer threw the first passes of his NFL career.
On November 23, 2000, the Patriots went into Detroit for their afternoon game. After the Lions jumped out to a massive lead, head coach Bill Belichick turned to his rookie quarterback to finish out the game.
“My first passes were on Thanksgiving in Detroit,” Brady said. “It was a different stadium. Three passes that day, (I) wasn’t very productive. A pretty inauspicious start to my career.”
