Tom Brady's jersey tops NFL sales through first two weeks of season

Despite an offseason filled with Deflategate controversy, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady continues to be the best-selling player in the league.

Through the first two weeks of the season, Brady's No. 12 sits at the top of the list of best-selling jerseys on the league's official website.

Brady also was the best-selling player among all licensed merchandise from March 1 to May 31, according to a list revealed by the NFL Players Association.

Patriots spokesman Stacey James said sales of Brady merchandise at the Patriots Pro Shop this offseason were "uncharacteristically high."

That Brady is No. 1 is impressive given that the team's jersey hasn't changed since Brady entered the league. The Patriots' last main jersey change came in 2000, other than the switch of manufacturers from Reebok to Nike and a font change on the logo below the neck this year.

And it's not just jerseys.

On Sept. 10, Under Armour started selling the black shirt worn by Brady in its new commercial. The shirt has the number 199 in black, which is the number of the overall pick that Brady was selected with in the 2000 NFL draft. The shirt sold out in hours and the company, which Brady endorses, is now taking preorders for the next batch.

Rounding out the top five in NFL jersey sales for the first two weeks of the regular season on NFLShop.com are Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant,New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski and San Francisco 49ers running back and kick returner Jarryd Hayne, with 70 percent of sales coming from Australia, where Hayne played rugby.

The Patriots have three players (Julian Edelman is No. 16) in the top 25, as do the Seattle Seahawks (Russell Wilson, Marshawn Lynch, 12th Fan) and the San Francisco 49ers (Hayne, Colin Kaepernick and NaVorro Bowman).

Dexter Manley would take Joe Theismann over Tom Brady

At some point in his career, Dexter Manley realized that he could get more laughs and feedback out of radio listeners by screaming something outrageous than by actually offering a measured opinion. This can be fun for everyone involved — sure, I laughed the time he threatened to break my genitalia, or when he said he would skip watching preseason football in favor of having sex. But he’s not actually saying these things for anything but the shock value.

Anyhow, with NFL Network set to debut a film about Manley’s life, he’s doing media appearances, which will lead to headlines featuring Manley saying outrageous things. Here’s one.

The former Redskins great started his interview with the Junkies on 106.7 The Fan Thursday morning with a fusillade of insults directed at Tom Brady, one of which had to be dumped by producers. Manley, you’ll recall, lost his gig with WTOP a few years ago after using a homophobic slur to describe Troy Aikman, for which he later apologized.

“First of all let me tell you something, let me ask you guys a question: who would you take, Joe Theismann or Tom Brady?” Manley began. “I’m taking Joe T. I’ve got a guy [at work], he loves Tom Brady, and I think Tom Brady, I ain’t gonna go there, but Tom Brady can’t even pack Joe Theismann’s jock. This [co-worker], that’s all we debate all day is about Joe Theismann or Tom Brady. I think Tom Brady can’t pick up a first down. He has no athletic skills, he’s surrounded by good people, but the guy is in the toilet, in my opinion. In my opinion he’s in the toilet.

“I’ll take Joe Theismann, I’ll take [Matt Ryan], anything over Tom Brady,” Manley went on. “I’ll take Joe Theismann first, I’ll take Matty Ice second, and I might take Doug Williams third, but I’m not gonna take Tom Brady to lead my team nowhere….Tom Brady is garbage. He can’t pick up a first down. He has no athletic skill. He’s surrounded by people, but Tom Brady is garbage.Garbage!!!!”

Matt Ryan? I mean, it doesn’t matter what he’s saying. He might as well have named Brandon Weeden, or John Beck. Regardless, he was asked why he’s so enthusiastic about Ryan.

“Matty Ice is a pure passer,” Manley said. “He can pick up a first down. I don’t know if he’s an athlete, he’s from Boston somewhere, but I’ll tell you what, he’s much better than Tom Brady.”

Manley went on to say many other outrageous things, some of which might appear later in this space. Who knows. Whatever.

Bill Belichick on Tom Brady returning to Patriots: 'He never left'

We here at CBS Sports are very pleased to bring to you on this holiday Friday "Great Moments in Bill Belichick Press Conference History," Vol. 345.

Just another in the long line of deadpan, kind-of-jerkish-but-mostly-hysterical moments involving the Patriots coach and the media, this began when someone decided to ask Bill if he was pumped about Tom Brady returning to the team after he won the Deflategate case.

The most important thing here? Belichick is 100 percent accurate. Brady never left. He's been practicing and playing in the preseason and only theoretically suspended for the first four games of 2015.

Never to be deterred, there were follow-ups.

Q: What are your thoughts on him being available to play the first four games of the season?

BB: We'll do the best that we can to have the best plan, the best preparation for Pittsburgh, same as we always do.

Oh hey and Bill while we're here. How do you feel about Deflategate in general?

Q: As far as you're concerned, is everything from the AFC Championship Game and deflated footballs and all that, is that all in the rearview mirror?

BB: We're focused on Pittsburgh.

Right on. Ever worried about Brady getting suspended?

Q: Was the coaching staff prepared to have Tom Brady for Week 1 all along?

BB: Right now, we're going to take the players that are available and try to figure out the best way to prepare our team for the Steelers Thursdaynight. That's all we're doing.

The best part about all this is it was on a conference call. So there's not even any awkward stare-down moments, but there is that hilarious stretch of weird silence that might be more entertaining.

Here's hoping someone at NFL Films was hanging out filming and we'll see it in the next Belichick "A Football Life" episode.

Bill Belichick is out there deadpanning again. (Getty Images)

6 photos of Tom Brady exiting the courtroom after his suspension was overturned, ranked by smugness

1. "Try not to laugh. Try not to laugh in all their faces, Tom."

2. "I wonder what's going through Goodell's head right now?"

3. "When I get home, I'm gonna put all my rings in my mouth and just gargle them for a few minutes."

4. "Oh wow look at that reflection in the car window. I'm still so damn handsome. Wow."

5. "And this was just about the deflated balls. They never even found out about the other stuff. Nerds."

6. "Oh man, I forgot all these regular-ass people were standing all around me."

Postscript: Please compare the above to a scene of Tom Brady *entering* the courtroom.

Just makes the post-courtroom Tom look even smugger.