He already threatened with it last year, and now it seems that his decision is final. Tom Brady, at 45, has announced that he is retiring from the NFL after 23 seasons. The quarterback, winner of seven league championship rings, thus closes a legendary career, being indisputably the best American football player of all time.
“Good morning, guys. I’m going to be direct. I retire. Really. I know the process was a big deal last year, so I got up and just wanted to record myself so you all know. You only have an emotional farewell essay, and I used it last year. I want to thank you all for your support: my family, my friends, my teammates, my rivals… I could go on forever, there are many. Thanks for letting me live my dream, I wouldn’t change a thing. I love you all, ”said Brady in a video posted on his social networks this afternoon and in which he ended up very emotional, on the verge of tears. His farewell last year was tremendously chaotic, with Brady confirming his withdrawal and backtracking a few weeks later, and for that reason this time he wanted to be direct. The announcement comes exactly 365 days after his first withdrawal, which he also confirmed on February 1.
The last game of Brady’s career in the NFL is the one that his Tampa Bay Buccaneers played in the first round of the playoffs against the Dallas Cowboys. After being removed, Brady had a few words at a press conference that sounded like a farewell, although he reiterated that the decision about his future had not been made. In this next preseason, Brady’s contract with the Buccaneers ended after three years with Florida and the quarterback had to choose between three options: retire, renew with Tampa Bay or find a new team. There was speculation that he could play for another year, with the San Francisco 49ers or Las Vegas Raiders as more likely destinations. But his gas has run out, and Brady says goodbye to the league he has dominated for two decades. He will continue to be linked to the NFL, since he signed a contract with the FOX network to become the highest paid analyst (10 years for about 375 million dollars).
Little more was left to demonstrate to Tom Brady. His successes speak for themselves to define him as the best of all time (‘GOAT’, as they call it in the United States). He has won seven Super Bowls., more than anyone in history (in fact, no franchise has more than six). He won the first six with the New England Patriots, a team with which he entered the league back in 2000, and where he spent 20 legendary years at the hands of coach Bill Belichick. The last one was won in 2021, in his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
But Brady’s career hasn’t always been rosy. Picked 199th overall in the 2000 Draft, few thought the less-than-athletic quarterback from Michigan could become a major player. in such a demanding league. His first year was spent on the bench and, in the second, Drew Bledsoe’s injury opened the door for him to get a title that he never released again. He ended up leading the Patriots to win the first Super Bowl in their history in 2001. The next two came in 2003 and 2004. The remaining three with New England came in 2014, 2016 and 2018. In between, he left legendary moments, such as the Super Bowl in which he rallied the Atlanta Falcons 28-3. It was in 2020 when Brady surprised the planet by announcing his departure from New England after 20 years. He chose Tampa Bay as his destination, and that same year he showed that he had not been wrong with his choice by winning his seventh championship.
Not even Tom Brady, with that aura of invincibility, was spared from injuries in his career. In 2008 he suffered a serious ligament injury in his left knee. That did not stop a Brady who, if he has stood out above all in one thing, it has been in his ability to extend his career without losing an iota of physicality or quality. In a sport where the average retirement age is 27, The Californian has won four championship rings between the ages of 37 and 44, possibly playing the best game of his career.
And it is that, surely, Brady still had years of good game left. In this 2022 season, the last of his career in the NFL, Tom Brady has not had an entirely good time in some Buccaneers who have been a disaster in attack, with hardly any resources for the quarterback, who also did not display his most brilliant game in a regular. Despite this, he has broken his own season record for passes completed with 490 and has collected 4,694 passing yards (sixth most of his career). He did not miss his appointment with the playoffs, although a team led by Brady finished the regular season for the first time with more losses than wins (8-9).
A total of 383 games played (48 of them in the playoffs), 286 victories, 10 times in the Super Bowl, seven championship rings, five times Super Bowl MVP, three times regular season MVP, 15 times chosen for the Pro Bowl, three times All Pro… Tom Brady’s career will always be linked to monstrous figures, unattainable for any mortal. He leaves having delivered 102,614 passing yards between the regular season and playoffs and 737 touchdown passes. Nobody in history has more passing yards or passing touchdowns than him, and will hardly be surpassed for a while. And above all, Tom Brady says goodbye having been able to dominate a league as cyclical as the NFL for 23 yearsin which it is so difficult to see the same team at the top for several years.
Without a doubt, he had little more to prove the greatest player of all time and one of the most successful athletes in sports history. But his retirement will leave a huge void in the NFL and its fans, who were still stunned by a 45-year-old quarterback who was able to win season after season. Now, Brady will be able to enjoy his children. And he leaves with his head held high, aware that he says goodbye with the crown of being the greatest in history.