James Harrison played against Tom Brady for many years when he was a part of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
But the man who was known for having a contentious relationship with all of his teammates said that, in the final few games of his career — when he played with the Patriots — he ultimately befriended the famed quarterback.
“Believe me, I wanted to, like, hate this dude with a passion. I get there and I’m like, ‘Dude, he’s the ultimate teammate.’”
Harrison was sharing his thoughts on his erstwhile teammate on the FS1 show, where they were talking about everything he'd learned over the course of his career.
Harrison went on to say that he went into the Patriots thinking that Tom Brady — a quarterback whom people love to hate, and hate to love, even if they are Patriots fans — would be an absolute jerk to him. This was partly due to the “superstar” reputation that preceded him, his extensive career on the field (including with the infamous “DeflateGate”), and his prior time playing against Harrison when Harrison was on the Steelers.
But, Harrison said that Brady made him feel “welcomed,” and that Brady treated every teammate — be he an undrafted rookie or an official part of the roster — with respect.
It was this behavior, said Harrison, that made Tom Brady earn his ultimate respect. Harrison also said that both he and Brady are competitive players who do what it takes to win, which is another reason they got along so well.
Follow Us
Subscribe