The Tampa Bay Buccaneers players aren't just getting used to playing with a new quarterback. Rather, the quarterback they now call a teammate is 43-year-old Tom Brady—a six-time Super Bowl champion whom multiple current Bucs players once idolized.

“Tom Brady is somebody I watched growing up,” running back Ke'Shawn Vaughn told ESPN's Jenna Laine. “He's 43, I'm 23 — he's got 20 years on me,” Vaughn said. “Having him throw me my first touchdown — it just gets no better than that. Not a lot of people can say that. … I feel like I gained a little bit of his trust catching that ball when it meant the most.”

Vaughn, a 23-year-old fourth-stringer, caught his first touchdown from Brady in Tampa Bay's Week 4 win over the Los Angeles Chargers.

Buccaneers tight end Cameron Brate—who may play a larger role in the offense after O.J. Howard ruptured his Achilles—acknowledged being initially awed by Brady, but now it's all about winning football games.

“He still is the GOAT to us. He still is Tom Brady. Not in that star-struck kind of way, but more so his leadership and his presence,” Brate said. “We respect it so much for everything he's been able to accomplish in his career and the way he does lead the team right now, that he is still kind of up on that pedestal. … But as far as him being some superstar, that's like, ‘Oh, shoot, that's Tom Brady' — that kind of wears off after a while.”

Through four games in Bruce Arians' offense, Brady and the Buccaneers rank seventh in offensive DVOA, ninth in passing yards per game (273.8) and eighth in points per game (30.0)—and they should only improve with time. Brady has thrown 11 touchdowns against four interceptions, and his QB Rating (99.4) through four games slightly exceeds his career number (97.0).

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Most importantly, Tampa has won three of four games heading into Thursday's matchup with the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field.

Brady spoke about how to ensure his teammates view him as a peer rather than the greatest football player of all time. Brady's response: be the best teammate he can be and build meaningful relationships.

“What you have with this sport is: you have your memories, and you have your relationships, and that's what it comes down to for me.

“To have the opportunity to come here and develop relationships with a different set of people … to be embraced the way I've been embraced has just been amazing for me, and I've just enjoyed every minute of it. I take that responsibility — being a quarterback, being a leader, being a captain — I take those very not lightly. I want to show up and be the best for my teammates every day, and I know they count on me to be dependable, consistent. They depend on me to be a great player for the team, and I want to deliver for them.”