The pants worn by Tom Brady in his final NFL game sold for $89,100 at auction, the record for any pants that weren't worn by Babe Ruth.
Brady's jersey from the Buccaneers' NFC wild-card game against the Cowboys on Jan. 16, 2023, sold for an all-time NFL jersey record for $1.39 million at Sotheby's in November.
"The record-breaking sale was a testament to the legacy of an icon," said Michael Russek of Grey Flannel, which sold the pants. "The passion of collectors never ceases to amaze me."
At least two pairs of Ruth pants sold for more than what the Brady pants commanded. The record paid for pants only was $183,500 for Ruth's 1921 pants in a Grey Flannel auction in 2012. Goldin Auctions sold pants said to be worn by Ruth from 1928-1932 for $90,000 in 2014.
To put the Brady price in perspective, it's almost double the price paid in 2013 for the pants Roger Maris wore when he hit his 61st home run ($47,800) and easily surpassed the pants Ruth wore for his 1939 Hall of Fame induction ($35,000) and the pants Mike Eruzione wore throughout the 1980 Olympics ($28,680).
The previous record for Brady pants was the pair matched to 11 games in his final season. That pair was sold for $31,200 in November by Heritage Auctions.
Darren Rovell is the founder of cllct.com and one of the country's leading reporters on the collectibles market. He previously worked for ESPN, CNBC and The Action Network.