The NFL playoffs are in full swing as the league is whittling down from eight teams to just four by the end of the weekend. The New England Patriots were one of those teams, and as they were facing off against the Houston Texans for the right to play in Denver next week, one NFL analyst appeared to take a dig at their former quarterback, Tom Brady.
Skip Bayless Takes a Shot at Tom Brady
Drake Maye is in the midst of his second NFL season and could be named the league’s MVP in just a couple of weeks. Sunday’s game was a chance for Maye to find his way to the first AFC Championship Game of his career.
A championship game performance was almost a formality for the Patriots when Brady was at the helm, but that did not stop Skip Bayless from giving some commentary about his thoughts as Maye and the Patriots finished off the Texans with a 28-16 win.
Bayless wrote a X post saying, “CONGRATS, PATRIOTS. NOW YOU HAVE A GREAT SHOT AT GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL. TOM WHO?”
CONGRATS, PATRIOTS. NOW YOU HAVE A GREAT SHOT AT GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL. TOM WHO?
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) January 18, 2026
Bayless has built his career on having outlandish opinions, but has typically been very supportive of Brady. Brady was part of arguably the greatest dynasty in NFL history. He played in nine Super Bowls with the Patriots, winning six of them.
The Patriots participated in the AFC Championship Game 13 times in Brady’s tenure. Every NFL season was almost the equivalent of being able to pencil them in to championship Sunday and figuring out the rest of the league from there.
This version of New England may prove to be that, but they are not there yet. They are, however, in the midst of one of the most dramatic turnarounds in recent memory. The Patriots were a combined 8-26 the last two seasons (2023-24; 2024-25) under Bill Belichick and Jerod Mayo.
Mayo was dismissed after just one season, and the Patriots brought in Mike Vrabel, a former teammate of Brady’s, who won each of the first three Super Bowls with the Patriots and was a fan favorite during his tenure there.
Since then, Vrabel has led a renaissance with the help of Maye at quarterback and a boatload of money spent in their free agency class. The Patriots’ toughness and mental fortitude have been on display throughout the first season of Vrabel’s tenure.
Next Sunday will mark the first AFC title game the Patriots have played in since the 2018 season, where they would go on to win the Super Bowl against the Los Angeles Rams, the last that Brady and Belichick would win together.
The 2025 season has been a rebirth for the Patriots organization, but it’s safe to say that they will not forget Tom Brady anytime soon.
