Matt Damon Thinks Tom Brady Is Fired Up After the Deflategate Controversy
Cambridge native and Patriots super fan Matt Damon thinks the Deflategate controversy has lit a fire under Tom Brady this season.
In an interview with the New York Daily News for his new flick The Martian, the Boston-bred actor says the whole situation was “blown out of proportion.” However, if it helps the star quarterback land a few more touchdowns, then it may have been a blessing in disguise.
“If it makes Tom hungry, then great. Fantastic,” Damon said. “There’s nothing more dangerous than a persecuted Tom Brady on the football field.”
So far, Damon seems to be right on the money with his analysis, as Brady has been killing it on the gridiron for the first two games of the season.
Not only are the Patriots a perfect 2-0 to kick off 2015, but Brady has also already thrown for 754 yards with seven touchdowns and no interceptions. Not too shabby.
But perhaps this was Damon’s plan all along.
Earlier this year, the actor (jokingly) admitted during a segment on Jimmy Kimmel Live! that he was the locker room guy responsible for deflating the footballs prior to that infamous 2014 AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts in January. The skit also featured appearances by fellow locals Ben Affleck, John Krasinski, Chris Evans, Steven Tyler, and Eli Roth, who all claimed to be behind the controversy.
Beyond the Brady talk, Damon also got serious about his friendship with Affleck during his Daily News interview.
The actor talked about how his longtime pal was able to make a career comeback after struggling to find gigs thanks to being a tabloid punchline due to his relationship with then girlfriend Jennifer Lopez.
Damon credits Affleck’s abilities behind the camera for helping him make a resurgence on the silver screen.
“Ben had that whole moment where he was in the crosshairs of Us Weekly and couldn’t really get a job,” Damon said. “From there, he wrote and directed his way out of that and into a kind of place that neither of us had been—winning an Academy Award for Best Picture. So that’s a good fallback. That mitigates some of the actor insecurity.”
