Tom Brady's Most Candid Confessions About Parenting

Tom Brady has one love in life, and it's not football — it's his kids. The NFL legend speaks passionately about being a father, no matter how the internet reacts to his parenting style. Brady knows that life is uniquely difficult for his children because of their father's fame, which is why he has enforced a few strict rules that his children have to follow. The all-star has learned many lessons in his parenting journey, practically sharing them all with the public.

The former New England Patriot has three children: Jack, Benjamin, and Vivian. He shares daughter Vivian and son Benjamin with ex-wife Gisele Bündchen. Brady's eldest son Jack, who is growing up to be his twin, is the one he co-parents with ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan. He and Gisele's highly publicized relationship was the epitome of having it all: a loving relationship, a perfect family, and an insanely glamorous life. However, over time their differences ultimately led the couple to split in 2022.

Their divorce and efforts to co-parent have been spotlighted in the media over the years, but that hasn't stopped Brady from attempting to give his kids the most normal life he can. However, his efforts may be in vain, considering what he's said about parenting his children.

Even a seven-time Super Bowl champion quarterback has admitted his hardest job of all has been parenting his three children. While speaking to an audience at the Fortune Global Forum in November 2024, Brady said, "I've screwed up a lot as a parent." While he emphasized the consistent support he gives his kids, he acknowledged the hardship they, especially his sons, have under his enormous shadow. In a clip obtained by TMZ, Brady said, "To be a boy, it sucks to be Tom Brady's son in so many ways."

Brady said he actively tries to emulate his own parents, whom he says were his greatest supporters, especially when it came to pursuing football (and New Englanders are so grateful for them). "The blessing my parents gave me was when I was that longshot as a kid who was a backup quarterback on a freshman team, they never said, 'Man, don't do that. It's going to be too hard. Let's do something different. Let's think about another backup plan,'" Brady recalled. "They kind of said, 'You know what? Go for it. Whatever you wanna be'... and that's probably my parenting style."

The example his parents made did in fact rub off on Tom Brady, who now supports his children in any interest they have, including activities outside of athletics. "They're growing in different areas," he told Us Weekly in 2023, explaining that one of his sons is interested in music and his daughter loves horseback riding. "And I think the greatest gift for a parent is just to be able to observe it and not to put any expectation or judgment on it."

Moreover, Brady has even expressed concern for his son Jack, who has been pursuing football in his teenage years. He told ESPN: "I wouldn't choose for him to do that because there's too many crazy expectations that people would put on him, most of them probably very unfair, actually."

His mindset was much different when his kids were younger. He candidly spoke with Men's Health about how he struggled with his son Benjamin's disinterest in sports since his eldest was an athlete. According to Brady, it took an intervention from his ex-wife Gisele Bündchen to realize that it was perfectly fine for Benjamin to pursue something beyond athletics. "Gisele kept saying to me, 'Would you effing understand that your son is different?'" he told the magazine.

While Tom Brady completely embraces individuality in his children today, he knows that the world has high expectations for the football legend's offspring. Many comments on an Instagram post for his son Jack Brady's 17th birthday expressed hope that Jack will be the future G.O.A.T. ("Greatest of All Time") of football, taking over his father's reigning title. Brady, however, just hopes that his kids grow up to be good people. "I'm trying to raise them — myself and their mom — are raising them to be very kind and empathetic and to have great perspective," he told E! News.

One concern he has is how growing up in an affluent family has influenced their outlook. Vivian, Benjamin, and Jack all know what it's like to watch the Super Bowl from the sidelines and fly on private jets. Brady is worried their humility will take a hit because of it. In an episode of the "Drive with Jim Farley" podcast, the retired quarterback told host and Ford CEO Jim Farley that he grew up in a middle-class family with two hard-working parents who balanced work and taking care of their children. "And then I look at my family, and it's so fast," he said. "I mean, we have people that clean for us. We have people that make our food. We have people that drive us to the airport." He knows his children's reality is skewed from the norm, constantly telling them "Guys, this is not the way reality really is."

Constantly being in the spotlight is no bother for Tom Brady, and he knows it comes with the territory of being famous. As a father, however, he is constantly protecting his kids, who are also a frequent focus in the media. In one famous instance, Brady and his son Jack made headlines after a father and son moment captured in the football star's 2018 Facebook docuseries "Tom vs. Time."

Episode 3, which was posted on Facebook, caught Jack interrupting his father, as Brady got a massage, to ask him to check on his fantasy football league. "What do I get?" Brady jokingly asked his son, to which Jack responded with a kiss on the lips. "That was like a peck," Brady said, which prompted Jack to give his dad a longer smooch. The controversial moment went viral, some calling it weird, while others defended it as a sweet gesture of familial affection.

Brady responded to the criticism online, telling the "Today" show: "I had kissed my son in a very loving way — I love my children more than life itself." He said that lots of the berating comments unfortunately were targeted at his son. However, Brady seized the opportunity to condemn those who saw more than innocent father-son affection. "We all need more love in this world and way less division and separation," said Brady. "We need to) be more compassionate, empathetic, and gentle on everyone, even with ourselves."

According to Tom Brady, he's all about the laughs, but when it involves his family, that's when the jokes have to end. He revealed on "The Pivot" podcast that he regrets doing "The Roast of Tom Brady" Netflix special, which aired in April 2024. "I loved when the jokes were about me. I thought they were so fun," the five-time NFL MVP told hosts Ryan Clark, Fred Taylor, and Channing Crowder. "I didn't like the way it affected my kids."

Understanding the pitfalls that come out of participating in an event like the roast has transformed into a parenting lesson for Brady. "I'm going to be a better parent as I go forward because of it. And at the same time, I'm happy everyone who was there had a lot of fun," he said.

Many of the jokes were brutal quips about his and Gisele Bündchen's divorce from comedians including Kevin Hart and Nikki Glaser. The aftermath of those jokes resulted in one of Brady and Bündchen's messiest moments, publicly butting heads about the night's outcome. Glaser even commented after the fact, telling the "Today" show: "I feel like maybe he didn't consider the backlash from his family and how it would affect them and I do understand that," adding that he should've done his research on the comedians who were about to publicly slam him and his image.