Shutterstock
Tom Brady looked like his old self on his very first play – launching a perfect touchdown pass to Stefon Diggs in the corner of the end zone.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion hadn’t played competitive football in more than 1,000 days. But there he was, evading a free rush on fourth-and-goal during the opening drive, stepping up in the pocket like he’d never left, and delivering a strike after replacing Jalen Hurts.
Brady followed up with another gorgeous throw to his longtime buddy Rob Gronkowski for the 2-point conversion, giving the Founders FFC an 8-0 lead over Team USA in the Fanatics Flag Football Classic.
That’s when things fell apart.
Gronk went down with a hamstring injury. Brady and his squad of current and former NFL players – coached by Sean Payton – couldn’t keep pace with a Team USA roster that’s been perfecting this game for years.
Team USA Wasn’t Messing Around
The national team crushed Brady’s Founders FFC 43-16 after dismantling Joe Burrow’s Wildcats FFC squad 39-16. They scored on every single possession except a kneel-down at the end of one victory; their mastery of flag football’s nuances was obvious from the start.
Burrow, Jayden Daniels, Saquon Barkley and the Wildcats then knocked Brady, Hurts and the Founders out of the round-robin tournament with a 34-26 win.
The Founders kept the championship game closer, but Team USA still pulled away 24-14.
“My heart is really hurting right now,” Brady said between losses at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles.
Learning on the Fly
It was clear the NFL players and coaches were figuring out the game as they went – they’d only held a couple of practices before the 5-on-5 tournament started. They nearly had more penalties called against them than flags pulled.
Brady got penalized for tossing one of his flags to the ground because he couldn’t quickly insert it back into place before taking a snap during a hurry-up situation.
Payton was furious when an official told him it was third down on the sideline, then switched to fourth down before the snap.
Despite the struggles, Brady – playing with that familiar scowl and intensity that made him the greatest quarterback in NFL history – had a few other highlights. He called his own version of the “Philly Special” and tossed a touchdown pass to Hurts against the national team.
The Real Flag Football Kings
With flag football making its Olympic debut at the 2028 LA Games, plenty of NFL players have already said they’d like a shot at playing for gold.
Darrell “Housh” Doucette III, Nico Casares and the USA squad aren’t about to hand over their spots. And after Saturday’s performance, it’s clear they shouldn’t have to – their speed, sophistication on offense and overall understanding of the sport overwhelmed a group of NFL stars who barely practiced together.
The event was originally scheduled to take place at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but was relocated to Los Angeles because of the Iran war.
Brady’s roster also included Ashton Jeanty, Alvin Kamara, Antoine Winfield Jr., DeVonta Smith, Von Miller, Damar Hamlin, Patrick Peterson and boxer Terence Crawford.
Burrow’s team – coached by Kyle Shanahan – featured Kyle Juszczyk, Odell Beckham Jr., Davante Adams, DeAndre Hopkins, Derwin James Jr., Luke Kuechly, Jalen Ramsey, entertainer and boxer Logan Paul and YouTuber IShowSpeed.
The 48-year-old Brady showed he’s still got the arm and the smarts. But flag football? That’s a different game entirely.
