Brady ruffles Patriots’ feathers after insisting he has no rooting interest in upcoming Super Bowl

New England Patriots fans will always love Tom Brady, who led the franchise to six championships. But current and former Patriots players said Thursday are unhappy with the quarterback-turned-broadcaster after he claimed to lack a rooting interest in the upcoming Super Bowl between New England and the Seattle Seahawks. 

“I don’t have a dog in the fight in this one,” Brady said on the “Let’s Go!” podcast earlier this week. “May the best team win.”

The AFC champions, led by coach Mike Vrabel, didn’t appreciate his neutrality. 

“Personally, it makes me sick,” Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane told reporters on Thursday. 

The rage wasn’t limited to current players either. Former New England cornerback Asante Samuel took his frustration with Brady to X. 

“Tom Brady I am highly I mean highly disappointed in you not rooting for your ex teammate, Mike Vrabel, who is about to do something special,” Samuel wrote on social media. “I’m going to fye your a– up one of these mornings.”

New England’s franchise developed a cult-like intensity under Brady and former coach Bill Belichick. “The Patriot Way” defined a commitment to the franchise, without consideration for personal acclaim. 

But Brady said that chapter of his life is closed. The NFL’s all-time leader in touchdown passes is focused on his role as a broadcaster and minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders. 

“Now in a different phase in my life, I really root for people and the people I care about, the people who I know the work that goes into what they’re trying to accomplish,” Brady said. “So I really want to sit back as a fan and enjoy the game, enjoy the moment.”

To Patriots die-hards, the reasoning wasn’t strong enough for a someone who’d been honored with a statue outside of New England’s home stadium. 

“If you’re a Patriot for life, you know what it is,” former Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork said on Boston-based radio station WEEI. “Don’t give me that political bullcrap.”

The disgruntled Patriots will vie for an NFL record seventh Lombardi Trophy on Sunday. The game is scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. in Santa Clara, California.