New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady came in at No. 6 during the latest episode of NFL Network's "NFL Top 100" series that ranks the best players in the league.
The ranking is voted on by the players, and this year marks the first time in the list's history that Brady's peers didn't vote him No. 1 overall.
Los Angeles Rams defensive end Aaron Donald, who was unable to make much of an impact in his team's Super Bowl LIII loss to the Patriots in February, was voted the No. 1 player in the league. While there's no debating Donald is an elite player, Patriots center David Andrews is sticking by his quarterback.
"I think Aaron Donald's a great player," Andrews told reporters after Thursday's training camp practice at Gillette Stadium. "He's a hell of a football player. He can do some special things. What he did last year, I think he earned that. But, I'll always take No. 12."
Andrews has had a front row seat to Brady's greatness. The University of Georgia product has played four seasons with the Patriots, and he owns two championship rings from three Super Bowl appearances.
Brady received plenty of criticism last season despite throwing for 4,355 yards with 29 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions to lead the Patriots to the No. 2 seed in the AFC playoffs. The 41-year-old quarterback raised his performance in the playoffs and engineered game-winning drives late in the fourth quarter of both the AFC Championship Game against the Kansas City Chiefs and Super Bowl LIII versus the Rams.
You might be wondering what could keep Brady motivated entering his 20th season. He's won pretty much everything in his career. One thing the legends do so well is find little things to fire up them up. Could this year's drop in the NFL Top 100 help fuel Brady in the Patriots' quest to win back-to-back titles? You can't rule it out.
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