Tom Brady Reminds Us How Emotion Can Set Up a 'Great Year' for Aaron Rodgers

For what felt like an eternity, Tom Brady was public enemy number one for Big Apple football fans. The New York-Boston rivalry didn't help, but TB12 and his Patriots also owned the AFC East, which didn't exactly endear himself to Jets supporters. These days, though, Gang Green will be a bit happier with the legendary quarterback.

Why is that? Well, Brady has officially thrown his support behind Aaron Rodgers, predicting that his first season with the Jets will be "great."

And while the seven-time Super Bowl champ's resume is impressive enough to give his statement some clout, there is another factor at play. Brady has walked this exact road before, and he knows how Rodgers will be feeling.

Brady sees good things in Rodgers' Jets future

While anyone can talk about pro football, truly understanding the exact challenges faced by an NFL quarterback can be difficult without standing under center. Brady, whether you love him or hate him, undeniably has that experience.

During an appearance on the Sirius XM "Let's Go" podcast, he spoke from that position of knowledge and explained the potential impact of Rodgers' change of scenery.

"Well, it's just, there's a different energy about it. It's a newness," Brady explained (h/t NFL.com). It's a fresh start to try to take where you've been, to bring all the good and then not to bring the tough lessons, you know? Because sometimes the tough lessons always remain unless you work through 'em, you know? So it's like you go through a lot of years at one place and there's a lot of, I would say, mental scar tissue, from losses or relationships or certain experiences. Oh, this guy had said this once, or that teammate, or this coach or that general manager."

As the now-retired QB can confirm, though, a change of scenery is able to remove those burdens and replace them with more positive feelings.

"Now you go to a new place and you have none of that. So now you can just hopefully bring your best knowing that you probably didn't do everything right where you were, but you tried your best. And now you get to go to a new place with a different type of emotional energy. And I'm excited for him," TB12 continued. "He'll be invigorated. Looks like he's having a good time up to this year. I know he has been engaged in the offseason, which is always great, and really trying to connect with his teammates. So I'm excited to see what he does. They have a really good team. They have a really good offense. And, you know, Aaron's been, when he's got good receivers, man, it's pretty dangerous... I think he's gonna have a great year."

And while Jets fans will (understandably) latch onto the positive prediction at the end, Brady's larger point is also worth highlighting.

It's easy to overlook emotion when discussing Rodgers

During the summer, we've heard plenty of reasons why Rodgers will—or will not—be a success in New York. On one hand, that makes sense; in the modern era of stats and analytics, we want hard data. On the other, though, it ignores a human element that's potentially at play.

The prescient part of Brady's comments was that he followed this path before. He left New England and headed to Tampa, hearing predictions about how he'd struggle without Bill Belichick running the show. Those issues, of course, didn't materialize. TB12 won a Super Bowl ring, and the Patriots lost a step.

Rodgers is a different person moving between different teams, but there are clear parallels. He was unhappy with how things played out in Green Bay, and ultimately left town to strike out on his own. Now, he's leading a team desperate for postseason success, and the ball is in his court. If the Jets succeed, Rodgers will be vindicated. He'll be a key to victory, not a potential locker-room problem.

Can we quantify that motivation with numbers? No, but it's something we can all understand. Whether you've changed jobs, left a relationship or gone through any other personal change, you've felt the desire to do something different. That can be a powerful force.

Will some extra emotion turn a benchwarmer into a world-beater? No, but we're already talking about a player with a Super Bowl ring and multiple MVP titles to his name. Rodgers is working from a high baseline, and if he pushes even harder, the rest of the AFC East could have their hands full.

And, when push comes to shove, do you really want to be the one who doubts Tom Brady's confidence? That has historically proven to be a mistake.