FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft promised a "special" day Sunday when the team honors Tom Brady during the regular-season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles (CBS, 4:25 p.m. ET).
"He's really excited and I'm excited, because our fans never really got a chance to say goodbye in a proper way. And we're going to do something special and unique with him," Kraft said Thursday night at a ceremonial ribbon-cutting event for a $250-million renovation of Gillette Stadium.
"He has 20 members of his family coming -- all his nephews, nieces, his sisters, his parents. So we're honored to be hosting all of them."
Kraft said there will be a halftime ceremony for Brady, who is also expected to be on the field before the game. Kraft noted the time restrictions of a halftime ceremony, but said the franchise has a "good plan" to make it memorable.
"He made such amazing contributions," Kraft said. "When you think about it, the NFL is 103 years old and we were privileged to have the greatest player in the history of the game for 20 percent of those years right here. I think it's kind of cool we can say 'thank you' to him."
Brady, speaking on the "Let's Go!" podcast Monday on SiriusXM, previewed his trip to New England.
"I have so many memories from my time there, and memories with people there, and I'm creating a new memory with the people there [Sunday]," he said. "To go back to that stadium and bring my kids and my family in a different way, I've not been to that stadium in this way ever. I went there as a player, I went there once as a competitor and now I'm going to go there as really a fan ...
"I love the sport and I love the Patriots, so going up there to see a lot of my friends and family is going to be really a great experience."
Brady added that he is filled with "a lot of gratitude" as he returns to a place where he had "two decades of incredible life-altering experiences."
Current players have talked this week about how exciting it will be to have Brady return.
"When you try to put into words what he has meant for this place, what he continues to mean for this place, it's really hard," said captain Matthew Slater, the team's longest tenured player who was teammates with Brady from 2008 to 2019. "I'm just thankful we have an opportunity to celebrate him the right way, that our fan base can celebrate him the right way.
"How fortunate were all of us to be able to witness something like that? Twenty years of an unparalleled run, greatness that we've never seen before."
The Patriots have had two sub-.500 seasons since he left as a free agent to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020 and are underdogs Sunday against the defending NFC champion Eagles.
Kraft was a visitor at the team's practice Thursday, walking the field with coach Bill Belichick and engaging in a somewhat lengthy conversation with him. He said Belichick had asked him to come to practice.
"In the end, we want to win," Kraft said, noting the team's tough opening game against the Eagles.
"I sort of like that most people are picking us to come in fourth in the [AFC East] division. I think there's a great chemistry. This might be one the youngest teams [we've had]. Coach has done a good job overall. I think having [offensive coordinator] Bill O'Brien come here and work with Mac [Jones], they seem to have great chemistry. I'm excited about the team."