With a Tom Brady statue unveiled outside Gillette Stadium, the NFL GOAT conversation is getting a new push: USA TODAY’s “250 for 250” series invites readers to vote on the best all-time American football star, culminating in a special interactive reveal.
The first thing you notice outside Gillette Stadium is the statue—Tom Brady, standing as a permanent marker of an era that turned him into the sport’s most durable legend.
The New England Patriots unveiled the statue of the former NFL quarterback outside the stadium. a moment framed by the larger truth of American sports culture: football isn’t just watched here. It’s lived. argued over. and built into the daily news cycle—especially in the fall. when the league and college football can crowd out everything else.
For many fans, the conversation about the best football player of all time starts and ends with Brady. “TB12” arrived as a sixth-round draft pick out of Michigan and. over a 23-year career with the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. accumulated seven Super Bowl titles. five Super Bowl MVPs. and an NFL-record 737 touchdown passes in regular season and playoffs.
But the statue is also a reminder that the debate doesn’t belong to only one player or one period. The NFL was founded in 1920. the first college football game was played in 1869. and football’s “all-time” list has always stretched back toward those earliest leather-helmet days—when facemasking wasn’t a penalty because there were no facemasks.
Now that long history is being folded into a readers-first vote. Visit the site on May 27 to see what NFL experts have to say about the top U.S. football stars of all time in the “250 for 250” series. Until then. readers are being asked to weigh in on their GOAT picks. submit a sleeper suggestion for the list. and flag what they see as the most obvious omission.
The voting sits inside a larger release cadence. Starting in the week of April 20, weekly lists of top American athletes are set to run, each followed by a poll for readers to vote on nominees for the next week’s list. The schedule lays out a steady march toward a major interactive moment:
Week of April 20: Men’s basketball. Week of April 27: Women’s basketball. Week of May 4: Baseball. Week of May 11: Golf and tennis. Week of May 18: Motorsports and combat sports. Week of May 25: Football. Week of June 1: Track and field. Week of June 8: Soccer. Week of June 15: Winter sports. Week of June 22: Swimming, diving and gymnastics. Week of June 29: Pioneers, leaders and innovators. July 4: Full “250 for 250” reveal.
For now, the statue at Gillette Stadium gives Brady a place in the physical landscape of the game. The “250 for 250” football vote gives everyone else a chance to fight it out in public—pick a GOAT. argue an omission. and put their own version of football history into the series. one ballot at a time.
Tom Brady statue Gillette Stadium New England Patriots Tampa Bay Buccaneers 250 for 250 NFL GOAT football poll sports media
Brady statue outside Gillette is kinda wild, like people forgot everyone else existed.
250 for 250? So we’re voting for the best player but also like… a countdown thing? I saw this headline and figured it’s just another Brady circlejerk. Wouldn’t even surprise me if they rig it toward him.
Wait I thought “250 for 250” was about jerseys or something. Like if it’s 250 for 250, is that 250 yards? Also Brady being “GOAT” is only because he was durable… but Mahomes got injuries too? Confusing article, the statue is cool though.
The NFL founded in 1920 and college football in 1869 blah blah, but my GOAT is whoever won the most when my team was good. That’s how it feels anyway. I’m not doing homework for a “readers-first vote” thing. Plus they already built the Brady statue so like… what’s the point of voting May 27 if it’s obvious.