Byron Kennedy may have held more bargaining power over Tom Brady and his 600th-touchdown ball than he thought.
During a second-quarter appearance on the Manningcast, part of Monday Night Football’s broadcast of the Seattle Seahawks’ game against the New Orleans Saints, Brady said that Kennedy — who made headlines as the fan who returned Brady’s milestone ball to a Tampa Bay Buccaneers official and received a handful of items in return — “realized he lost all of his leverage” once he leaned over the end zone wall and handed the ball back.
“He should’ve held it to get as much leverage as possible,” Brady added.
Peyton Manning, who hosts the broadcast with his brother Eli, agreed that it was an amateur move by Kennedy. “If he would’ve held it, he would’ve been sitting in the Tom Brady suite for the rest of the season,” Manning joked.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, Kennedy received two signed jerseys and a signed helmet from Brady, a signed jersey and game-worn cleats from Evans, and season-ticket passes for the remainder of the 2021 season and all of 2022 — in addition to a $1,000 voucher to the team store. Brady said on the Manningcast appearance that he he also gave Kennedy a bitcoin, which valued at $63,000 at the time, per Yahoo! Sports.
Tom Brady during the Bucs’ win over the Bears Getty Images“At the end of the day, I think he’s still making out pretty well,” Brady said.
Brady’s 600th touchdown pass was one of four that he threw in a 38-3 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday, highlighting a game where he had his fewest yards (211) and lowest completion percentage (55.6%) of the season. He’s the only player in NFL history to reach the 600-mark for touchdowns, and he reached the mark with a nine-yard fade to Mike Evans in the end zone in the final seconds of the first quarter. Evans then turned and handed the ball to a fan in the end zone wearing his jersey number, and a video later captured him on the sideline realizing that he gave the milestone ball away.
Brady said after the game that he doesn’t hold onto too many items, but “I felt like that one might be a good one to keep.” And after some negotiation with Kennedy, he got it.
