Tom Brady turned 45 Wednesday morning, and while most middle-aged men clutched sore backs, iced achy knees or put off another workout in favor of riding a golf cart in moderate heat, sport’s most celebrated probably-sugar-free birthday cake added another candle at the start of yet another Brady season. As always, the dots that led here connect, in unusual ways, across sports, in defiance of physics, hence 45 reasons how 45 happened and why 45 matters, especially now.
1. The exercise in fun-with-numbers that takes place every Aug. 3 gets better every year. For example, CBS Sports made a list of the NFL’s top players over 30 in honor of Brady’s birthday. And, while some might quibble with Brady’s placement (first) relative to Aaron Donald’s (third), the gap in age between Brady’s accomplishments and those of his “older” contemporaries grows more striking every fall.
2. Sticking with that list for a moment: When Brady turned 30—in 2007!—only Aaron Rodgers had even made the NFL. He remained entrenched on the Packers’ bench that year.
