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Former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has made his final decision on retirement according to a new report on Saturday, January 29.
Per sources of ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Jeff Darlington, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback is “retiring from football after 22 extraordinary seasons.” The reported decision comes just six days after the Buccaneers were eliminated by the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Divisional Round.
Brady is coming off of a 2021 campaign in which he led the league in touchdown passes (43), passing yards (5,316) and completions (485).
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Brady Had Been Non-Committal for 2022 Season Prior to Report
Brady’s tune appeared to change in recent weeks, as the 44-year-old had become non-committal regarding his football future. He has previously iterated his desire to play until the age of 45, which is why he had inked a contract extension with the Buccaneers through the 2022 season.
According to CBS Sports NFL salary cap expert Joel Corry, a former agent, “$15M of Tom Brady’s $20M signing bonus from last March’s 1-year contract extension isn’t due to him until February 4.”
Brady spoke of his desire to spend more time with his family in his most recent appearance on the Let’s Go! podcast on January 25.
“Playing football, I get so much joy from it. I love it. But not playing football, there’s a lot of joy in that for me now with my kids getting older and seeing them develop and grow. So all these things need to be considered and will be,” Brady told co-host Jim Gray.
“I’m gonna spend some time with them [family] and give them what they need,” Brady continued. ”’They’ve really been giving me what I need the last six months to do what I love to do.”
Brady spent the first 20 seasons of his career with the Patriots after he was selected in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL draft. The University of Michigan product became the most accomplished player in NFL history, winning six Super Bowls with the Patriots, one with the Buccaneers, five Super Bowl MVP awards and three NFL MVP honors.
The Patriots legend also retires as the NFL’s all-time leader in most major categories, including wins, touchdown passes, passing yards and completions.
Brady’s Camp Refuting ESPN’s Reporting
According to Rick Stroud of The Tampa Bay Times, Brady’s agent Donald Yee told Bucs head coach Bruce Arians that Brady has yet to make a decision.
“Pump the brakes for a bit,” said Stroud. “Tom Brady has not informed the Bucs of his plans to retire. ‘No, he hasn’t that we know of,’ Bruce Arians told me. ‘Agent (Donald Yee) just told us he hasn’t made up his mind.'”
Yee has since followed up with a full statement writing in part, “Tom will be the only person to express his plans with complete accuracy.”
Brady’s father, Tom Brady Sr., told NFL Network’s Mike Giardi that Schefter’s initial report is “total conjecture.”
Fellow NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport also confirmed on Saturday that the Brady “does intend to retire” and that “the pushback appears to be based on timing.”
Brady’s official company — TB12 Sports — also seemed to confirm Brady’s retirement with a since-deleted message on Twitter which read, “7 Super Bowl Rings. 5 Super Bowl MVPs. 3 League MVP Awards. 22 Incredible Seasons. Thank you for it all, @TomBrady.”
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