‘The Roast of Tom Brady’ was the Patriots reunion you didn’t know you needed

The Netflix special saw plenty of former Patriots get together to share their thoughts on the greatest quarterback of all time.

The Roast of Tom Brady, a three-hour long Netflix special streamed live on Sunday night, saw the former New England Patriots quarterback take hits as if he was still playing.

What made the show interesting, though, was not just what was said about Brady but who said what, both about him and other people in attendance and participating. Yes, it featured “outsiders” as well — including, among others, host Kevin Hart, ex-NFL QB Peyton Manning, actor Ben Affleck, and comedian Nikki Glaser — but the main event was Brady and his colleagues.

And there were a lot of them besides the future Hall of Famer.

Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft participated, as did Drew Bledsoe, Randy Moss, Julian Edelman, and Rob Gronkowski. In addition, Rodney Harrison, Matt Light, Nate Solder, Dan Koppen, Danny Amendola, Willie McGinest and Lonie Paxton also were on stage. Bill O’Brien and Berj Najarian were spotted in the audience.

In a way, the special was a Patriots dynasty reunion.

It also had a much more upbeat vibe that the The Dynasty docuseries meant to chronicle the team’s unprecedented two-decade run of success. If there was one show meant to bring closure to the dynasty, it was this one rather than the more serious product produced by Apple TV+.

Besides the reunion aspect, here are some of our favorite moments from The Roast of Tom Brady.

Brady making sure Peyton Manning remembers his place

As noted above, former Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning — whose rivalry with Brady remains one of the best in NFL history — participated in the event as well. When Brady took the stage for a final rebuttal, though, he made sure not to let his former rival and good friend know about their place in league annals.

“I know sometimes you live in Denver, and sometimes you live in Louisiana,” Brady said. “But you will always live in my shadow.”

Drew Bledsoe getting benched, again

At the beginning of the show, a brief clip was played that saw Bill Belichick, Drew Bledsoe and Tom Brady showcase their acting skills. Those are nothing to write home about, obviously, but the scene was still a fun reference to Brady overtaking Bledsoe as the Patriots’ starter in 2000.

Bledsoe did get some jabs in himself when it was his time to roast. He spoke about experiencing two things Brady never will — being the first overall draft pick and celebrating a 28th wedding anniversary — and also took a dig at his former coach.

“At least when I got fired, somebody else wanted me,” he said, addressing Belichick.

Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft doing shots together

Even before they announced their mutual split in January, there was plenty of chatter about the relationship between Bill Belichick and Patriots owner Robert Kraft. Both men took the stage on Sunday, with Kraft singing the praises of both his long-time coach and his long-time quarterback.

In fact, the two even did a shot together.

That was not the only time alcohol was involved. A group of ex-Patriots — Brady, Belichick, Julian Edelman, Rob Gronkowski — did a shot at one point, with Gronkowski spiking the glass on stage. The tight end in general had a wild night between smashing glasses, absorbing some jokes himself, and several references of male genitalia (and more) during his own set.

Tom Brady and Bill Belichick going back and forth

The debate about whether Brady or Belichick was more responsible for the Patriots’ dynasty — when the truth instead is that they were in a perfect situation they both actively helped build — will continue for years to come. At least on Sunday, though, it was part of a playful back-and-forth between the two NFL legends.

“For all of you out there that think about who’s responsible for the Patriots’ success during the time Tom and I were there. Was it Brady? Was it me?” Belichick said. “Was it Brady? Was it me? In reality, the truth of the matter is it was both of us — because of me.”

Brady countered by talking about his superior Super Bowl rings count after leaving New England, followed by an Indy 500 metaphor.

“Maybe it’s not just the guy on the sideline,” he said. “When I go to the Indy 500, I don’t ask the winning driver, ‘Hey, who gassed up your car?’”

Belichick’s set was one of the highlights of the special, showing a side of him few people actually get to experience on a regular. He even mentioned The Dynasty, a show criticized for its storytelling seemingly looking for negativity and controversy.

“It’s an honor to be here at the roast of Tom Brady on Netflix,” Belichick said. “It’s not to be confused with the roast of Bill Belichick on the 10-part Apple TV series.”

Plenty of strays were being caught

Brady and the others present were not the only ones to occasionally become the butt of jokes. In fact, a wide variety of people were caught up in the event as well.

The likes of Mac Jones, Nate Ebner, Jimmy Garoppolo, Aaron Hernandez, and Alex Guerrero were mentioned, too.

“Tommy, good luck buying the Raiders,” said Robert Kraft, for example. “They already did your favorite thing — get rid of Jimmy Garoppolo.”

Belichick and Edelman went after Brady’s personal trainer Guerrero, who was in attendance as well.

“It was hard to butt heads with Tom because he was so far up Alex Guerrero’s a–,” Belichick said.

“In case you didn’t know, Alex Guerrero is the snake oil salesman who turned Tom Brady into a f—ing weirdo,” Edelman noted.

Even English soccer team Birmingham City was mentioned. The club, which has Brady as a minority owner, was recently relegated to the third tier and brought up by Belichick.

“Not so easy running a team. Is it, Tom?” he asked.

Other NFL clubs were also brought up, with Brady pointing to two in particular — the Indianapolis Colts and Buffalo Bills.

“I don’t want to get the NFL too upset. I’m trying to buy a piece of the Raiders,” he said. “I’m tired of owning just the Colts and the Bills.”

Julian Edelman finally getting to share his thoughts on Foxboro High

Former Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman can be referred to as a “Belichick guy” through and through, which is why he would not let the opportunity go to waste to also come after his former coach when it was his turn to take the podium.

“I’ve been waiting for this for so long: look a–hole, Foxboro High’s the only job offer you f—ing had,” Edelman said.

Belichick seemed amused by the joke.

The line of the night belonged to Bill Belichick

While jokes were naturally the preferred method of communication on Sunday, Belichick had one of the best lines of the night when he spoke in a serious voice for a second. Talking about former Patriots safety Rodney Harrison, Belichick said that him not being in the Pro Football Hall of Fame “might be the biggest joke of the night.”