What could be on tap for Tom Brady this Thursday versus Giants?

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will most likely continue his assault on the record books this Thursday versus the New York Giants.

The New England Patriots are 5-0 for just the fifth time in franchise history. The last time Bill Belichick, Tom Brady, and company began their regular season undefeated with five straight wins, they made history by going 16-0 in 2007.

A similar finish will obviously be extremely hard to replicate, but with the Patriots defense arguably looking like the best unit Belichick’s ever had and the offense still featuring Brady and a whole host of talented playmakers, would anyone really bet against this team? New England most likely will be favored in all of its remaining games this season, for what it’s worth.

Regardless of what kind of final record this team compiles in 2019, Tom Brady himself is bound to increase his individual statistical dominance as the year rolls on. He leapfrogged Brett Favre for the No. 3 spot on the all-time career passing yardage list Sunday versus the Washington Redskins, and he is almost a lock to make even more history Thursday against the New York Giants.

The future Hall of Famer needs just 18 yards through the air to pass his former rival Peyton Manning for No. 2 on that same list. It’s almost fitting in a way that Brady needs exactly 18 yards to do just that, considering that Manning wore No. 18 throughout his storied career with the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos.

Catching the all-time leader in career passing yards might be a bit more difficult for Brady to accomplish… though he does have a lucky break of sorts working in his favor.

New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees is in the pole position of that category with 74,845 yards, though he’s been sidelined with a thumb injury since the second week of the season. The initial timetable for Brees’ return was six-to-eight weeks, though Brees himself has repeatedly said he hopes to beat those estimates and return faster if he can.

Where things stand currently, Brady is exactly 2,922 passing yards behind Brees. He’s passed for at least 4,000 yards in eight of his past 10 seasons in the NFL, and he’s currently on pace to do so again in 2019… so Brady should close the gap on Brees significantly if the Patriots continue to let their 42-year-old quarterback air it out and if Brees remains in recovery.

That said, if Brees returns before Weeks 8-10 (his original expected activation date post-surgery), or if New England turns to a more run-heavy approach as the season wears on and the weather gets colder, it could slow down the rate at which Brady is chasing Brees significantly.

It’s also worth pointing out that the 40-year-old Brees plays his home games indoors in a dome stadium down south, whereas Brady plays his home games outdoors at the often cold-and-snowy Gillette.

There is one area where Brady has a decided advantage over Brees already in the career quarterback record books, though, and that’s in touchdowns. Brady pushed his lifetime mark to 527 with an additional three scores against the Redskins on Sunday; Brees idles at 522 after getting knocked out in Week 2 versus the Los Angeles Rams.

The all-time leader in passing touchdowns is Peyton Manning, who set the record at 539 four years ago with the Broncos. Brady obviously needs 12 more scoring passes to tie his old rival, and he needs 13 more touchdowns to take over the record outright.

Just as Brees has already established a comfortable margin between him and Brady in passing yardage, Brady should try to do the same and create some cushion between him and Brees in touchdowns, especially if he hopes to keep the record once he inevitably decides to retire one day – which could be well before Brees does the same.

Brady has averaged 32 touchdowns per season over the past 10 years. He already has 10 touchdown passes this season through the Patriots’ first five games, which puts him well on pace to finish with that exact season average of 32 this year. Assuming he does so, he’ll finish 2019 with 549 career touchdown passes, which is 10 more scores than Manning has to his name.

Based on the rate Brady’s currently averaging of throwing two touchdown passes per game, he’s projected to tie Manning’s mark in Week 12 when the Pats host the Dallas Cowboys. He would then be on track to surpass Manning and claim sole possession of the record in Week 13 when New England travels down to Houston to take on the Texans.

Even if Brady’s numbers slow down a bit later on this year, he’s still a good bet to overtake Manning sometime in December before the regular season concludes. It would be a real shocker if the Patriots legend doesn’t enter the postseason at No. 1 all-time in career passing touchdowns and at No. 2 all-time in career passing yards.

The second part of that equation should become reality as early as the first quarter Thursday night when Tom Brady’s Patriots take on their two-time Super Bowl nemesis: the New York Giants. It’s a game you won’t want to miss for those very reasons.