Photo: Getty Images North America
Julian Edelman gave a valid excuse for spurning Tom Brady's "recruitment" in the latest 'Madden NFL 22' ad.
“Ran out of AT&T minutes for the month my bad bro,” Edelman tweeted Tuesday (August 17) after the commercial was shared on Brady's verified social media accounts.
The ad features Brady attempting, and failing, to recruit some of his favorite retired former New England Patriots teammates including Edelman, Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Mike Vrabel, Willie McGinest, Tedy Bruschi and Chad 'Ochocinco' Johnson.
The commercial begins with the caption 'Come Play in Tampa Bay' with similar font and background music to a 1990s family sitcom, with the assumption that Brady is trying to convince his former New England teammates to join his new team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Brady is shown dialing his phone on the couch before he addresses the caller as "Jules," for Edelman, and asks the recently retired wide receiver, "you ready to play?"
The scene then cuts to Brady on the phone telling "Vrabes," that "coaching is overrated bro," in reference to Vrabel's current job as head coach of the Tennessee Titans.
Brady, presumably talking to Moss, then says, "I know you still got it, Randy, let's get back to playing," before frustratedly hearing the hang up tone several times.
Brady then goes through a series of attempts to recruit McGinest, Bruschi and Johnson, before giving up, putting on his headset and saying, "I guess I'll just play online," teasing that the quarterback was only trying to get his former teammates to play the video game.
Brady was selected for this year's Madden cover alongside Super Bowl LV opponent Patrick Mahomes.
The two quarterbacks are now the first active players to appear on multiple 'Madden' covers. The game's namesake, Pro Football Hall of Fame coach John Madden, had previously appeared on the cover every year from game's debut in 1988 until 2000.
Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders also appeared on multiple covers, once alongside Madden in 2000 as an active player and again in 2013 as part of a commemorative cover specifically for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 editions of the game after his retirement.
" Two Super Bowl Champions Two @NFL MVPS. "Two 2x Madden Cover Athletes The Greatest Cover of All-Time #Madden22," the game's verified account tweeted along with a photo of Brady and Mahomes.
Cameras caught Mahomes and Brady embracing and praising each other after Super Bowl LV in February, which saw Brady's Bucs defeat Mahomes' Chiefs 31-9.
Mahomes called Brady a "legend" and Brady called Mahomes "a stud," telling him to "keep in touch" when they met at midfield, as shown in footage shared by NFL Films.
Brady finished Super Bowl LV with 201 yards and three touchdowns on 21 of 29 passing, winning a record fifth Super Bowl MVP Award, which surpassed his own previous record set in Super Bowl LI (2017.)
The victory was Brady's first as a member of the Buccaneers after joining the franchise in March following 20 seasons with the New England Patriots.
Brady now owns a 7-3 record all-time in the NFL's biggest game and surpassed his own previous record for most Super Bowl wins by a quarterback (6) set in February 2019. The 43-year-old also broke his own record as the oldest quarterback to both start and win a Super Bowl also set in 2019.
The win was Tampa Bay's second Super Bowl victory in franchise history. The Buccaneers are also the only team in NFL history to both host and win a Super Bowl in their home stadium.