‘Pitchers of Beer and Rooster Wings’: Tom Brady Remembers a Memorable Journey to Buffalo

Back in 2010, the New England Patriots spent the day after Christmas in Orchard Park, N.Y., dominating the Buffalo Bills 34-3.

The game itself was a blowout. Brady only threw for 140 yards but had three touchdown passes (two to Rob Gronkowski) while the Patriots ran for 217 as a team. BenJarvus Green-Ellis had 19 carries for 104 yards, while Danny Woodhead had 13 totes for 93 and a touchdown.

What happened after the game, though, is what has become a bit of legend among Patriots fans — and those in Rochester eating barbecue that night.

The game itself didn’t see much snow, but it started coming down in a big way right after the final whistle – so much so that the Patriots weren’t able to fly home that night.

So, they pivoted.

“We got five busloads of people on the buses, headed to the airport,” Brady said. “What we’re going to do, we’re going to detour to Rochester, New York. Not only do we detour, we head that way. I don’t remember how long the drive was, at least over an hour, maybe two. And when we got there, everyone was like, ‘Hey, we’re all snowed in. We can’t get home. What should we do for the night?’ 

“Well, there happens to be a Dinosaur Bar-B-Que.”

The Patriots cruised to an easy win over the Bills on Dec. 26, 2010, in Orchard Park. (Jerome Davis/Icon SMI/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Dinosaur Bar-B-Que is a staple in the Western New York area, and that restaurant in Rochester served exactly what you would have expected on a Sunday night.

“Pitchers of beer and chicken wings,” Brady said. “So, we had the whole offensive group together, the defensive group together. We had everybody having the time of their life at the Dinosaur Barbecue celebrating a great win over the Bills.”

Stories have been written all over the internet about the night the Patriots were stranded in Rochester and Brady’s beer-chugging prowess. While Brady admitted he didn’t win every competition he was involved in that night, he feels he stood his own.

“I didn’t drink any out of a shoe. That’s a rumor, OK?” Brady said. “I won a lot. I lost a few, but I think I gained the respect of all my offensive linemen, going toe to toe, head to head with some of the best beer chuggers on the planet.”

Brady certainly earned the respect of his teammates that night, and his beer-chugging prowess only added to the aura surrounding him.

“I still have never seen anybody chug a beer faster than Tom Brady,” former Patriots offensive lineman Ross Tucker said in 2014. “You should’ve seen the way he slammed down his cup — it was like he was spiking the ball after a TD. It was hilarious. It was awesome. 

“It was textbook Brady.”

Rob Gronkowski (left) and Tom Brady connect twice for scores against the Bills on Dec. 26, 2010. (MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images)

The Patriots improved to 13-2 with the win over the Bills, and Brady said the night was a great experience for the team that late in the season.

“They say there’s a saying, ‘Make lemonade out of lemons,’” Brady said. “That’s what we did that night.”

Unfortunately for the top-seeded Patriots, they ran into an upstart New York Jets team that ended their season in the Divisional Round.

“I don’t want to talk about how that season ended,” Brady said, “but that was a great moment of our trip to Buffalo.”

Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!