Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski send video messages for Julian Edelman's Patriots Hall of Fame ceremony
Julian Edelman took his place in the Patriots Hall of Fame on Saturday in front of a massive crowd in Foxboro. Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski couldn't attend the festivities, but made sure to send along video messages for Edelman's enshrinement ceremony.
There were several Patriots greats of yesteryear in attendance Saturday, including team Hall of Famers Ty Law, Willie McGinest, Raymond Clayborn, Andre Tippet, and current head coach Mike Vrabel. Former players who don't yet have a red jacket were also on hand, including Edelman's former teammates Matthew Slater, Danny Amendola, Devin McCourty, and David Andrews, among others.
Brady and Gronkowski couldn't be in town due to their broadcasting duties for FOX on Sunday, but made sure to send messages of congratulations to Edelman for the receiver's big day.
Tom Brady's message to Julian Edelman
Edelman was one of Brady's most trusted targets in New England's second dynastic period. The receiver is second in Patriots history with 620 receptions, and he had another 118 catches and five touchdowns in the playoffs.
While fans got to see Edelman do his thing on Sundays, Brady praised the three-time Super Bowl champion receiver for bringing it every single day.
"Honestly, there's nobody who's more deserving and who embodies what it means to be a Patriot more than you. The toughness, the competitiveness, the relentless drive you brought every day to work. Everybody saw the catches on Sundays, but what I got to see were all the hours that nobody else did," said Brady.
"You weren't the biggest, you weren't the fastest, but nobody was tougher. Nobody was more dependable, and nobody came through in the clutch when it mattered the most more than you," added the seven-time Super Bowl winner.
Edelman praised Brady during his speech on Saturday, and said the quarterbacks set the standard for everyone who put on a New England Patriots uniform.
"I was lucky to be drafted here, because I got to be around a guy like him who was a role model in this league, a guy who taught me what it was like to be a professional," said Edelman. "The standard you set Tom, your drive, your dedication, your example drove us all to be better. And he was the same guy every day."
Rob Gronkowski's message to Julian Edelman
In his message to Edelman, Gronkowski praised the 5-foot-10 receiver for standing taller than anyone else when the Patriots needed to make a play.
"You showed up when it mattered most, made the impossible catches, took the hardest hits, and kept getting up. Nothing kept you down," said Gronkowski. "You helped define what it meant to be a patriot. Toughness, resilience and a relentless drive to win, and always with a chip on your shoulder."
No message from Bill Belichick to Edelman or Bill Parcells
There was no video message from Bill Belichick on Saturday to either Edelman or his former boss Bill Parcells, who also went into the Patriots Hall of Fame.
Belichick obviously couldn't attend Saturday's festivities because his UNC Tar Heels were playing UCF during the ceremony. (The Tar Heels lost, 34-9, in Orlando.) Though Belichick didn't send in a message for one of his greatest undrafted free-agent signings, Edelman made sure to praise his former head coach in his speech.
"We'll start at the top. Coach Belichick. He's one of the greatest coaches that I've ever had," said Edelman. "I lived in constant fear of coach, and still kind of do. But I can't thank him enough for giving me an opportunity. Your coaching was tough, it was hard, it was honest. And sometimes we didn't understand why we were doing what we were doing. But it always seemed to pay off."