Tom Brady has announced his retirement from the NFL, and it’s not hyperbole to say that this is the end of an era. Brady is the most successful quarterback in NFL history and is widely recognized as the greatest player to have played the position. Patrick Mahomes may have something to say about that over the next ten years, but for now nobody is coming close to Brady’s accomplishments.

After last year’s retirement fiasco and his subsequent personal issues, Brady handled this one in a clean and subdued manner, with a simple announcement on Instagram that didn’t leak. He handled it with class.

He also avoided any silly Brady vs. Belichick talk following his announcement by having Bill Belichick join him on his podcast, giving both of them the opportunity to gush over the other’s accomplishments, which frankly came off as very authentic.

Belichick was effusive in his praise of Brady, and went into great detail about how Brady saw the field and recognized coverages.