Watch: Brady has incredible return to Gillette Stadium

Former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Tom Brady has incredible return to Gillette Stadium

By Adam Gretz | Last updated 9/10/23

Now that Tom Brady is officially retired and no longer a competitor, the New England Patriots can give the legendary quarterback the proper send off for everything he did with the franchise.

They welcomed him back to Foxboro on Sunday by introducing a new tradition to Gillette Stadium and also getting a blast from the past from Brady at halftime.

First, Brady helped break in Gillette Stadium's new light tower by having him be the first Keeper of the Light, which will apparently be a new weekly tradition involving the ringing of a bell to kick off games.

The first Keeper of the Light in @GilletteStadium history is… @TomBrady. pic.twitter.com/k3WZqgzQpO
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) September 10, 2023

That was followed by a halftime ceremony that involved team owner Robert Kraft announcing that he is waiving the mandatory four-year wait period and immediately inducting Brady into the team's Hall of Fame.

That will happen at a ceremony in June.

But the coolest part of it all was Brady taking off his jacket to reveal a No. 12 Patriots jersey, and then running down the field toward the end zone and screaming "let's go" as he did for so many years before every Patriots game.

Press box view: Tom Brady in the Patriots jersey with his trademark fist pump as halftime ceremony gets underway. pic.twitter.com/JQ8fBHoRPj
— Mike Reiss (@MikeReiss) September 10, 2023

Brady is the greatest player in franchise history — and one of the greatest to ever play in the NFL — and led the team to nine Super Bowl appearances and six Super Bowl championships during his time with the team.

The Patriots have struggled since he left for Tampa Bay prior to the 2020 season (where he would win his seventh Super Bowl with the Buccaneers) but banners fly forever and nobody put more banners up for their team than Brady with the Patriots.

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