Greatness has a measure beyond a record achieved the way Brady's has been. I'm sick of him.
He's not great in the ways that count as the final measure of greatness. As a pretty good CB named Cromartie, no paragon of virtue himself, not-so-famously put it, "Tom Brady's an a**hole." Somehow the interview got scrubbed.
How good is Tommy Dimplechin?
Who cheats for stats and cheats for wins?
In the top ten? Uhh, maybe so.
But greatest of all time? Hell no!
You see, greatness has another measure:
It isn’t just how cool you look,
It isn’t just your winning record,
Especially if you won by crook.
Greatness has no asterisk*
It’s not the legacy of a jerk
Whose record was pumped up for years,
By using balls… that weren’t.
The great ones don’t win every time,
And they take their hits – lose or win.
And they don’t flop, and kick, and whine -
Like men, they take it on the chin.
The great ones… they could take a hit,
Get up and come back strong.
The great ones play it by the rules,
‘Cause they know right from wrong.
The greats congratulate the winners
When they chance to lose;
Graciousness and humility
Are signs of greatness, too.
The great ones are fair competitors
Who can hold their heads up high,
Because their victories are deserved:
Because they did it right.
