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Tom Brady has no plans to hang up his cleats even if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers win the Super Bowl at Raymond James Stadium. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported as the playoffs started that Brady plans to return to the Buccaneers for the 2021 season. Brady is expected to play out the final year of his contract with the Bucs and believes he can be even better with the team next season.
“Let’s turn the focus on Tom Brady whose birthday comes in August,” Rapoport noted on NFL Network on January 9. “He’s going to be 44 by the start of next season. My understanding is he does in fact plan to play for the 2021 season. Got a two-year contract, plans to honor it. He is loving his time in Tampa Bay. Actually thinks he’ll be better next year with the Bucs.”
The Buccaneers face big roster decisions this offseason with key players like Chris Godwin, Lavonte David, Shaq Barrett, Antonio Brown and Leonard Fournette among others all slated to hit free agency. There is also the aspect of Brady getting his first full offseason in Tampa to play recruiter for other potential free agents. We have already seen players like Brown, Fournette and Rob Gronkowski come to Tampa to join Brady in making a run at a championship.
Here’s a look at Rapoport discussing Brady’s future in Tampa:
Brady Wants to Win a Super Bowl for Arians
Brady is looking for his seventh Super Bowl ring, but plenty of his teammates will be playing in the big game for the first time. The Buccaneers quarterback made it clear that his goal is to win a Super Bowl ring for head coach Bruce Arians.
“He’s just so endearing to everybody and I think everyone wants to win for him,” Brady explained, via Buccaneers.com. “I think that’s what you want to do for a coach – you want to get out there and you want to win for him. He puts a lot into it, expects a lot out of it, has high expectations for us every day in practice [and I am] just really excited for him to be recognized in the way that he is. I know he’s a two-time Coach of the Year, but [he has] just done an amazing job this year with the team in really adverse situations. I love playing for him.”
Brady Could Play Beyond His Current Contract With the Bucs
Brady signed a two-year, $50 million contract with the Buccaneers last offseason, which will run through next season. The big question is no longer if Brady will retire after the Super Bowl but how long the legendary quarterback will continue playing.
Brady has long stated he wants to play until he is at least 45 years old, which would require a new deal with the Buccaneers or another team in the 2022 offseason. Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer told Early Edition that he can see Brady playing past the age of 45.
“He loves what he’s doing,” Breer said, per NBC Sports Boston. “He’s probably figured out a way where he can balance his family life with his professional life pretty effectively now, and I just think as long as he still loves it, as long as he can still do it he’s going to continue to do it. I wouldn’t even rule out him going past 45. I think we’ve sort of put this end date on his career ourselves.”
Breer emphasized that Brady has no desire for his career to have a fairy-tale ending and will finish playing on his own terms. The NFL insider co-signs Rapoport’s report on Brady not retiring in 2021.
“I don’t think he even thinks about the idea of retiring, even if he wins this game,” Breer explained. “The reason why, I don’t think he’s ever been in pursuit of some fairy-tale ending. I think that’s something we think about, I don’t think that’s the way he thinks about it. I know there’s this pursuit of going out the way John Elway did with the Broncos. I think he just loves competition that much.”
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