Tom Brady has officially left the New England Patriots. What many Pats fans feared was going to come about has indeed happened. What might surprise some is it doesn’t appear the team worked very hard to keep the sure Hall of Famer.
As The Inquisitr reported earlier today, Brady took to his Instagram to announce he was officially leaving the only team he’s ever played for in his NFL career. When rumors of his departure first materialized, there were more than a few people who thought it was because Brady was turning down whatever the Patriots had to offer. It turns out, he was simply getting the vibe the front office wanted to go younger.
NBC Sports reporter Tom Curran posted on Twitter what others have been hearing this morning.
“In the end, a tangible effort by the Patriots to keep Tom Brady in New England never happened. No negotiation. Just the intimation that it was on Brady to say what he wanted. For Brady, that stance spoke volumes.”
ESPN’s Mike Reiss took to Twitter as well and summarized what Patriots owner Robert Kraft told the network not long after Brady made his announcement. Kraft claims Brady initiated contact on Monday night and came over to talk about things.
New England’s owner said the conversation was cordial and positive. Despite the fact that everyone got along well, it appears the two sides decided it would be best for Tom Brady to play his 2020 season elsewhere.
The fact that the New England Patriots and Tom Brady only “initiated contact” on Monday night will likely shock some fans of the team. There had been rumors the quarterback and his head coach, Bill Belichick, had talked on the phone a couple of times over the short offseason. It’s not clear if those rumors are true at this point.
The good news for the veteran quarterback is there will be no shortage of suitors, starting today. The San Diego Chargers, Las Vegas Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chicago Bears are all said to be in the running to land him, although a couple of those teams already have a quarterback.
That means that when Brady does sign with a new team, it’s going to jump start a game of musical chairs. There is also a line of quarterbacks who would like to head to New England and become the new starting quarterback for the Patriots. If the speed at which things moved on Monday night is any indication, the music could stop later this afternoon.
