Tom Brady is opening up about the challenges of parenting.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion, 47, admitted that it probably “sucks” to be his son because his kids will be measured against him and his illustrious NFL legacy when they are older.
“To be a boy, [it] sucks to be Tom Brady’s son in so many ways,” Brady said during an appearance at the Fortune Global Forum in New York City on Tuesday, November 12, per footage published by TMZ. “There’s a lot of challenges I faced as a kid … my kids naturally are gonna be faced with their own challenges, and they gotta figure out how to overcome them. I’ll be there to support them and I’ll be learning along the way with them.”
Brady shares son Jack, 17, with ex Bridget Moynahan and son Benjamin, 14, with his ex-wife, Gisele Bündchen. Brady and Bündchen are also parents to daughter Vivian, 11.
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The former NFL quarterback said that Jack aspires to be a basketball player but quipped that “unfortunately, he jumps as high as I do.”
But that hasn’t deterred Brady from encouraging his son to pursue his passion, just like his parents did for him.
“Whatever our kids choose … we gotta support [them],” Brady said. “The blessings my parents gave me was when I was that long shot as a kid who was a backup quarterback on a freshman team … they never said, ‘Man, don’t do that. It’s gonna be too hard. Let’s do something different. Let’s think about another backup plan.’ They kind of said, ‘You know what, go for it. Whatever you wanna be, go for it.’ And that’s probably my parenting style.”
He continued, “I tell [Jack], ‘Dude, you’re gonna be a stud.’ I said, ‘Wait till you hit your growth spurt, you’re gonna be jumping higher, you’re gonna be dunking.’ Whether he does or not, who cares? But I want him to know that his dad’s got his back.”
Brady also said that he’s “screwed up a lot as a parent” over the years, but he tries to be “dependable and consistent” with his “three amazing kids.”
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Brady and Bündchen, 44, divorced in October 2022 after 13 years of marriage. Bündchen is currently expecting her first baby with boyfriend Joaquim Valente.
A source exclusively told Us Weekly last month that Brady was aware of his ex-wife’s pregnancy before it became public.
“When Gisele told the kids about her pregnancy, she made sure to let Tom know as well,” an insider close to Brady told Us. “This happened a few months ago. She wanted to give him that courtesy and knew the kids would tell him either way.”
According to the insider, Brady was “shocked” by his ex-wife’s pregnancy news but is “ultimately happy” for her. “It was hard to digest at first,” the source added. “He knows Gisele is a great mom and was destined to be a mom.”
