When the 2022 fall season arrives for Jalen Ramsey, he will witness this career first: Entering an NFL season without Tom Brady.
The Los Angeles Rams All-Pro cornerback played in five career games total against the seven-time Super Bowl winner, who took to social media to announce his retirement on Tuesday, February 1 after a brilliant 22-year career that saw numerous records fall and multiple championships captured.
For Ramsey personally, his Ram and Jacksonville Jaguar teams went 4-1 against Brady — with the one loss representing the 2018 season AFC championship game in Foxboro, which ultimately became Ramsey’s final playoff appearance with the Jags. His Ram teams, though, never lost to Brady when he suited up for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, going 3-0 overall according to Pro Football Reference.
But for the 27-year-old and the Rams, both represent the final team the legendary quarterback faced in his NFL career. Ramsey and L.A. got the better end of Brady and his Buccaneers, winning in a dramatic 30-27 road win where Matt Gay nailed a walk-off field goal in the closing seconds.
But Gay’s kick, plus the final score, aren’t the only memories from Ramsey in looking back at Brady’s last game. He offered a humorous, yet honest, reaction to Brady’s retirement news.
Ramsey’s Tweet
At 8:38 a.m. PT, just two hours after Brady made his decision to call it an NFL career, Ramsey fired off this tweet on his personal Twitter account:
The best QB of all time retired, DANG… he threw his last TD on me 😂
For anyone who may recall, Ramsey is referring to this touchdown from that NFC divisional showdown at Raymond James Stadium:
The final TD pass of Tom Brady’s career
Rocket to Mike Evans on Jalen Ramsey 👀
Again, Ramsey and the Rams went on to defeat the Bucs — helping solidify the end of the Brady era. However, Ramsey’s Tuesday tweet wasn’t without humor from others.
Notable Responses to Ramsey’s Brady Tweet
One Los Angeles area pro sports athlete was first in reacting to the Ramsey/Brady tweet.
“That’s a great story to tell the grandkids though,” was what Chargers long snapper Matt Overton tweeted in response to Ramsey.
Steve Wyche of the NFL Network gave this one word, one emoji response:
@jalenramsey Yo!! 🤣
He added one more tweet attached to what Ramsey posted:
Meanwhile, one Buccaneers fan identified as @SamSoCal_ redid an X-Men graphic with Professor Charles Xavier having Mike Evans on his telepathic mind:
The Nation Sports Editor Dave Zirin gave Ramsey this new title:
Lastly, Fox Sports 1 media personality Tanya Ray Fox gave the tweet her four-word response:
Ramsey’s Personal Accomplishments Versus Brady
So what individual stats does Ramsey take with him in his battles with Brady, sans the Evans touchdown?
That fourth quarter score was the only time Ramsey surrendered a Brady touchdown pass. According to Pro Football Focus, Ramsey never allowed a touchdown strike in the 2020 Monday Night Football game or in the 2021 September Week 3 contest.
Was Brady hesitant to throw it toward Ramsey’s side in all other battles? Not exactly. The 34-24 home win by the Rams at SoFi Stadium saw Brady throw it in Ramsey’s direction 10 times, ending with Ramsey surrendering 8 total catches for 75 yards. That game saw Evans get bottled to 2 grabs for 18 yards.
But in the divisional contest, Evans finished with 97 yards on 5 catches. Ramsey drew only Tyler Johnson and tight end O.J. Howard outside of Evans per PFF. That win was also the only time Ramsey recorded a pass deflection in two games versus Brady and the Bucs.
While Ramsey had his hilarious take on Brady riding off into the sunset, the two men do have respect for one another, seen below:
“I love playing against you.”
Nothing but respect between Tom Brady and Jalen Ramsey 💪
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Rams’ Jalen Ramsey Has Hilarious Response to Tom Brady’s Retirement