Which team did Tom Brady defeat in Super Bowl XXXVI for his first NFL championship?

Tom Brady defeated the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI for his first NFL championship. New England won 20–17 on February 3, 2002, at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans.

The Rams entered as the high-powered “Greatest Show on Turf,” but New England built a 17–3 lead before St. Louis rallied to tie the game in the fourth quarter. Brady, then 24, calmly directed the Patriots’ final drive, moving them into position for Adam Vinatieri’s winning 48-yard field goal as time expired.

The victory gave the Patriots their first Super Bowl title in franchise history and launched the Brady–Belichick dynasty. Brady was named the game’s Most Valuable Player after completing 16 of 27 passes for 145 yards.

The opponent is sometimes remembered simply as the Rams, but the franchise was based in St. Louis for this game. It later relocated to Los Angeles, so “St. Louis Rams” is the historically precise answer for Super Bowl XXXVI.