Patriots coach Bill Belichick thanks Tom Brady upon QB's retirement: 'His pursuit of excellence was inspirational'

Tom Brady officially announced his retirement from the NFL on Tuesday after 22 record-breaking seasons. On Wednesday, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick — Brady's boss for 20 of those seasons — issued a statement thanking Brady "for his relentless pursuit of excellence" and said Brady will go down as "the best player in NFL history."

"I am privileged to have drafted and coached Tom Brady, the ultimate competitor and winner," Belichick wrote in a statement released by the team. "Tom's humble beginning in professional football ultimately ended with him becoming the best player in NFL history.

"Tom consistently performed at the highest level against competition that always made him the number one player to stop. His pursuit of excellence was inspirational."

Brady was selected by the Patriots in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL draft, No. 199 overall. He took over as New England's starter early in the 2001 season following an injury to Drew Bledsoe.

He never gave the job up, leading the Patriots to an improbable victory in Super Bowl 36. That marked the first of six championships Brady and Belichick won together.

The most successful coach-QB duo in NFL history finally broke up following the 2019 season as Brady signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He guided the Bucs to victory in Super Bowl 55, securing his seventh championship.

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Brady did not mention Belichick, the Patriots or New England owner Robert Kraft in his retirement message posted Tuesday.

That fact, naturally, caused speculation about lingering bad blood between Brady and the organization. But an omission from a statement does not alter 20 years of history. What Brady and Belichick accomplished together will likely never be replicated, something Belichick, one of the game's great historians, surely knows.

"Tom was professional on and off the field, and carried himself with class, integrity, and kindness," Belichick wrote. "I thank Tom for his relentless pursuit of excellence and positive impact on me and the New England Patriots for 20 years."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick thanks Tom Brady