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Tom Brady guaranteed his teammates they’d win the Super Bowl, and they believed him

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady puts his hand on running back Leonard Fournette's helmet.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady congratulates running back Leonard Fournette, who scored on a 27-yard run during the second half of Super Bowl LV.
(Lynne Sladky / Associated Press)
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Tom Brady had been to the Super Bowl before — nine times to be exact.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback had also won the Super Bowl before — six times to be exact, all with the New England Patriots.

So it’s really no surprise that the 43-year-old veteran knew just what to say to his teammates in the days leading up to Super Bowl LV against the Kansas City Chiefs.

And it’s no surprise that those players believed what the GOAT had to say.

“All week, he made us believe we were going to win. He was texting us at 11 o’clock at night, ‘we will win this game,’” running back Leonard Fournette said of Brady after the Buccaneers’ 31-9 win Sunday night. “We believe in him. ... We just ran with it.”

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Fournette, who rushed for 89 yards and one touchdown, added of Brady: “He was on point. He was telling us what to expect. ... We believed his game plan.”

The Buccaneers played like a team that believed in itself. The Tampa Bay defense sacked star Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes three times and pressured him a record 29 times.

Mahomes completed 26 of 49 passes for 240 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions. In November, Mahomes completed 37 of 49 passes for 462 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions against the Buccaneers.

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Brady’s contributions to the Buccaneers’ second Super Bowl victory weren’t limited to behind-the-scenes encouragement. He threw three touchdown passes with no interceptions, and was named the Super Bowl MVP for the fifth time in his career.

“I’m just blessed to be next to this man. ...” Fournette said of Brady. “He’s the GOAT, the greatest football player to ever play. I can tell my girls I played with that man.”

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