Getty Mark Davis with Antonio Pierce.
Tom Brady retired last offseason and stuck to his decision for the 2023 season. However, even though he spent a year away from football, there’s still speculation he might return for one more season.
The Las Vegas Raiders would be the logical landing spot for Brady. He’s supposed to be getting an ownership stake in the team and is close with owner Mark Davis. After the team drafted Brock Bowers in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, many noted that the Bowers-Michael Mayer tandem is similar to the Rob Gronkowski-Aaron Hernandez duo that Brady had a lot of success with.
That could make the Raiders even more appealing to the legendary quarterback. While he doesn’t think it’s going to happen, ESPN’s Dan Graziano won’t completely rule out the idea
“I really went back and forth on this one, but I settled on ‘likely not happening.’ What Brady said a few weeks ago reminded me of way back when I was covering the Yankees: Roger Clemens would join in midseason because the pitcher felt like he was too old to manage his way through a whole season,” Graziano wrote in an April 27 column. “Could you imagine Brady doing something like that? I kind of can. But Brady is all about preparation and I also can’t see him jumping into a season without his usual offseason routine to prepare.
“Can we completely rule this out? Somewhat astoundingly, no. But if I had to guess, which I do here, I’m guessing it’s more likely not to happen. It sure would be fun, though!”
Tom Brady Mentioned Las Vegas Raiders as Team He’d Play For
The main reason Brady is back in the NFL conversation is due to some recent comments. He mentioned the Raiders as a team he’d possibly be interested in if he were to return.
“I’m not opposed to it,” Brady said on the April 11 episode of “DeepCut with VicBlends” when asked about a possible NFL return.
Brady is going to be 47 when the 2024 NFL season starts so it’s still unlikely he returns. George Blanda is the only former quarterback who was older than Brady when he retired. However, he made his last start as a quarterback when he was 42 and mostly played kicker when he was older. Brady coming back and starting for a team would be totally unprecedented in the NFL.
Tom Brady says he wouldn’t be opposed to coming back if a team calls.
OK 👀🔥🔥🔥🔥
Tom Telesco Expects Aidan O’Connell & Garnder Minshew to Compete
The Raiders were expected to be aggressive in adding a quarterback in the draft but weren’t able to get one of the top prospects. The team signed Gardner Minshew in free agency and had Aidan O’Connell start 10 games last season. According to general manager Tom Telesco, the plan is for those two to compete for starting quarterback.
“As I sit here right now, that’s it,” Telesco said when asked if he expects Minshew and O’Connell to compete for the starting quarterback job during his April 26 media availability.
This was likely not the Raiders’ ideal plan heading into the offseason but there were too many teams that needed quarterbacks this offseason. The team will eventually need to find a better long-term option but Minshew and O’Connell have proven they can win games.