Brady breaks silence on retirement rumors
Tom Brady says he is still undecided on his retirement as the star responded to claims that he is calling time on his unrivalled career at the age of 44.
ESPN reported at the weekend that Brady’s playoff defeat with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers against the Los Angeles Rams would be the last time fans see the icon on the gridiron after a legendary career spanning 22 seasons.
But Brady himself has suggested his mind is not firmly made up, telling the ‘Let’s Go!’ podcast on Monday that he was still “going through the process” of making a decision.
“Sometimes it takes some time to really evaluate on how you feel and what you want to do and when the time is right, I’ll be ready to make a decision one way or another just like I said last week,” said the seven-time Super Bowl winner.
“I’ll know when the time’s right,” Brady replied when asked if he had a timeframe for a decision.
“I’m very blessed to play as long as I have. As things have gone on the later parts of my career whether that was five years ago, you know, even this year, there's a lot of interest of when I’m going to stop playing and I understand that.
“It’s not that I don't recognize that, it’s just when I know, I’ll know and when I don’t know, I don’t know. I’m not going to race to some conclusion about that.”
Brady’s season ended when defending champions the Buccaneers were ousted from the playoffs by the Rams, in a game in which Brady came close to leading a sensational comeback after leveling the game at 27-27 with 42 seconds remaining.
But it wasn’t to be as the Rams progressed and have since booked their spot at Super Bowl LVI at their home SoFi Stadium.
Brady joined the Buccaneers in 2020 after 19 years in New England, winning a record seventh Super Bowl with his new team in 2021 as the quarterback continued to defy his advanced years.
Brady was famously picked 199th in the 2000 NFL Draft but has gone on to enjoy the most spectacular career of any NFL player in history.
Th San Mateo-born star is a three-time league MVP and has featured in the Pro Bowl on a record 15 occasions.
ESPN has claimed that Brady could be waiting for the current season to finish before announcing his retirement as he does not want to upstage the NFL’s postseason games, including the Super Bowl on February 13.
