“It’s been a great privilege to coach Tom for the last 15 years, 14 years as starting quarterback. We have a great relationship. We meet on a regular basis weekly several times. I can’t think of a more deserving player than Tom to be the recipient of the accolades that he has this week, and particularly last night and today here. He’s our leader. He competes as well as any player I’ve ever coached. He’s well-prepared. He has great poise and great presence. He may not always be perfect, as it is for any of us. We all have our moments, but Tom, like many other players on our team, is the guy that fights to the end and competes until the end. There’s no player I respect more for that than Tom. That’s been a great pillar of strength for our football team for the past decade and a half. I sincerely appreciate that.“ – Bill Belichick