Tom Brady is so great that his greatness actually ended up costing NBA legend Charles Barkley $100,000, all because he led the greatest Super Bowl comeback of all time. Super Bowl 51 ended up going down as a historic game, something nobody could have seen coming after the Falcons put the Patriots in a 21-3 hole in the first half, and then a 28-3 hole in the third quarter. However, all the scripts were rewritten in the second half after Brady and the Pats got into the zone.
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Brady winning the game against the Falcons officially gave him the NFL GOAT claim. Till then, he was tied with Joe Montana for most Super Bowl wins at four, but this one took him over the top. Not only did he surpass Montana’s total, but he also managed to do it in such a historic fashion that there really was no debate left. Betting against Brady is a dangerous game, but Barkley really believed the Falcons had it in them. To be fair, for most of Super Bowl 51, Atlanta was the better team.
Tom Brady put Charles Barkley in a $100,000 hole
Barkley had placed a bet on the Falcons to win the big game, and he ended up deeply regretting it. However, till the final whistle rang, it really seemed like Atlanta had Brady down.
Brady was picked off heading into the second half, and the Pats’ offense had no answer for what Atlanta was doing. The Falcons opened the second half up strong too, immediately extending their lead to 28-3.
After that, the rest is history. Brady engineered masterful drive after drive to put the Patriots back in the game. The highlight moment came deep in the fourth quarter when Brady launched a pass to Julian Edelman in double coverage. After the ball bounced around a little, Edelman ended up with the ball, making a miraculous catch.
It finally seemed like a historic catch would go the Patriots’ way, and it did. The Pats tied the game up, and received the ball first in overtime. They promptly marched down the field and put up the winning points. The highlights are still chill-inducing.
Tom Brady 2nd Half vs the falcons in Super Bowl 51 🐐🔥
Came back from Being down 28-3 & won his 5th SB Ring 💍 https://t.co/FkB5sDzR19 pic.twitter.com/mNu96JOohK
— Shannonnn sharpes Burner (PARODY Account) (@shannonsharpeee) June 19, 2023
At halftime, Barkley was celebrating, thinking that he had just hit a massive bet. On the Dan Patrick Show, Barkley revealed the roller coaster of emotions he went through.
“I was drunk at halftime,” he explained. “I was doing shots. I was up 28-3. I was feeling it,” Barkley said. “And then one of my friends, Roy Green, says ‘yo man the game’s not over yet.’”
However, the drinking didn’t stop even when the Pats started to turn it around. “Well, no. I just got drunker,” Barkley elaborated. “That’s one thing about gambling. You drink when you’re gonna win, but you drink more when you’re gonna lose.”
Charles Barkley lost $100,000 when the Falcons lost their 28-3 lead to the Patriots in Super Bowl LI. pic.twitter.com/1dDBxqolcf
— Dan Patrick Show (@dpshow) October 7, 2020
Brady has a knack for big comebacks
For whoever counted the Patriots off after the first half, they were severely underrating what Brady could do. Sure, 28-3 is a massive deficit, and with any other quarterback or team, the game is probably over.
Not Tom Brady though. When Brady and the Pats beat the Seahawks in the Super Bowl a couple of years ago, they came back from 10 points down in the fourth quarter. In the same postseason run, they came back from multiple 10-point deficits against the Baltimore Ravens in the Divisional Round.
Last year, he almost led another improbable comeback, nearly beating the Super Bowl champs Los Angeles Rams after going down 27-3. He’s the comeback kid for a reason, and Super Bowl 51 was the biggest example.
