According to multiple sources including Jeff Darlington and Adam Schefter of ESPN on Saturday, the 22-year historic career of Tampa Bay Buccaneers and former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady will be coming to an end with his retirement.
Brady, 44, likely knew this was his final year but never wanted a farewell tour according to the sources. The reason to hang it up was likely several factors including health, family, and on a less serious note a possible turnover of players on the Tampa Bay roster. It is still unknown when Brady will officially formalize the retirement, not wanting to upstage the NFL Conference Championship games or Super Bowl. Many believe TB12 will sign a one day contract with New England, and officially retire as a Patriot.
Drafted by the Patriots with the 199th pick (Sixth Round) of the 2000 Draft out of the University of Michigan, Brady won seven Lombardi Trophies, the most championships won by a single player in NFL history. He won six of those in New England, and helped Tampa Bay beat Kansas City for his seventh and final title last season in his first year in South Florida. This season he led the NFC South Champion Buccaneers back from a 27-3 deficit in the Divisional Playoffs to the Rams to tie it, but LA won on a last second field goal in what will be his last career game. He currently holds the all-time record for touchdown passes with 624 and passing yards with 84,250. His other accolades include being a five-time Super Bowl MVP, three-time league MVP, two-time NFL Offensive Player of the Year, NFL Comeback Player of the Year, and a 15-time Pro Bowler among just some. Brady will be the second future Hall of Fame QB to retire this week, as Ben Roethlisberger also announced his retirement on Thursday.
Earlier this week, Brady appeared on the Jim Gray podcast Let’s Go, and stated, “I said this a few years ago, it’s what relationships are all about. It’s not always what I want. It’s what we want as a family. And I’m going to spend a lot of time with them and figure out in the future what’s next. I’ll know when I know. I think for all of us, you know, we can all decompress a bit. It’s been six straight months of football. Every day consumed by day in and day out football. And I think now it’s just some time to spend some time with my family and spend some time with my kids.”
