Tom Brady has always been known for his friendly demeanor on the field, even towards opponents charging at him every snap. But did that come without its advantages? Not at all. As Brady once recalled, being nice to opposing D-linemen, complimenting their skills, gave him a slight edge. It softened those defenders up so they wouldn’t hit him too hard. That is, until he faced Ndamukong Suh.
Ndamukong Suh, an All-Pro defensive tackle, wasn’t fooled by Brady’s tricks. As the former Patriots QB recounted, during a game against Suh and the Dolphins, he quickly found out that his opponent wasn’t interested in playing nice.
It started with a heavy stiff arm to the QB’s back, even after the ball had already been thrown. Brady fell to the ground more than once due to these hits, and eventually, he decided to approach Suh and try his classic strategy.
“I never wanted to show him like, ‘God damn, that hurts,’” Brady shared. “So, I slapped him on the butt, and I go, ‘Dude, stay out of our f------ backfield today.’”
But Suh wasn’t having it. Brady recalled, “And he looked at me and goes, ‘I’m not your f------ friend.’”
Suh’s savage reply quickly shut Brady down. He had never been stonewalled before when trying to be nice to opposing defenders. But Suh made it clear he didn’t care about Brady’s friendliness — he was only focused on inflicting as much pain as possible on the GOAT. Even so, Brady respected the response.
“I never said another word to him,” he added.
Except he did. The duo eventually became teammates in Tampa Bay, where they even won a Super Bowl together. Brady and Suh are now friends and have described each other as “great teammates.” The latter also expressed during their time together that he enjoyed being on the GOAT’s side for once rather than against him.
It goes to show that not every friendship gets off on the right foot. Especially in sports. Opposing sides and bitter rivalries often create animosity without ever giving players the chance to connect off the field.
But sometimes, the best friendships emerge from rivals coming together. Think of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal or Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. These iconic athletes had fierce rivalries that eventually evolved into lasting friendships.
Nevertheless, it was funny to hear about Suh gagging Brady once upon a time. Sometimes, people don’t fall for the “nice guy” strategy. Suh was determined to impose his will on Brady that day, and there was nothing the QB could say to change that. But it makes for a great story all these years later.
