Tom Brady returns to Gillette Stadium for the first time this season Sunday when the New England Patriots host the Cincinnati Bengals.
Brady knocked the "rust" off last week in Cleveland, but the local fans are pumped to see their leader back in person. The last time the Pats played at home sans Brady, fans watched their team get shut out by the Bills.
Pats owner Robert Kraft told NFL Network's Stacey Dales on Sunday the stars are coming out for Brady's return.
"We're all excited. We definitely have all the A-listers, they usually don't come out till the end of the season. But the request for tickets today are off the charts. A lot of it is Tommy's homecoming, so to speak. People are really excited. Being in Cleveland last week, this is my 21st season as an owner, and I never have been at the tunnel, waiting to go out on the field about an hour before the game, and I hear people chanting, "Brady, Brady!" It was really amazing. I have no tickets left. That's really a tribute to Tommy, and what he's accomplished. Having him back, we're all excited."
The Patriots went 3-1 with backup quarterbacks Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett. Kraft cited coach Bill Belichick's discipline for the Pats' impressive record sans their future Hall of Famer.
"We have a system that's in place. Everyone does their job and understands their role. I was thinking about it, we had three different quarterbacks start games for the first five games," Kraft said. "... We just have continuity, which I think is important with this business."
Sunday's game has extra juice in Foxborough with Brady finally freed to play in his home stadium.
"He really is like a son to me," Kraft said of Brady. "We've been together for 17 years. Some of the people playing on the team with him were like three or four years old when he started playing. I think he's evolved as a person. His love and passion for the game and how hard he works, I think today he appreciates what he's doing more than maybe he did 10 years ago. He works at the game, he eats a certain way, he trains. One of the good things about having him back the last two weeks really, is how he trains and having the young kids on the team. I think any of us who deal with millennials see how they take in information and how they do things. You have to evolve to adjust to them. Seeing this work ethic and how he does things, it's been a great leadership example for every younger player for our team."
Add this to Brady's catalog of accomplishments: Gets through to Millennials.
