Tom Brady Believes Carli Lloyd Should Have Chance As NFL Kicker (On This Condition)

Tom Brady is all for NFL teams giving Carli Lloyd the opportunity to blaze a trail, provided she fulfill one important criteria.

The New England Patriots quarterback addressed the possibility of the United States women’s soccer team legend pursuing a career as an NFL kicker Tuesday during his appearance on WEEI’s “The Greg Hill Show.” Lloyd has been rumored to trade one kind of football for another ever since she kicked a 55-yard field goal last month at Philadelphia Eagles training camp. Her trainer, James Galanis, later revealed to FOX Sports’ Martin Rogers that NFL teams had inquired about her availability and one even offered to put her on its roster for a preseason game.

Lloyd, a two-time FIFA Women’s World Cup winner, insists she’s good enough to kick in the NFL and even set a timetable for when she might seek a tryout. Brady urges her to prove her mettle.

“I think if you’re good enough to do it and teams wanted to explore that, then everyone should have an opportunity,” Brady said, as transcribed by Ryan Hannable. “It’s a very highly competitive game and it’s hard to find good players. It’s hard to find good quarterbacks. It’s hard to find good coaches. It’s hard to find good linebackers. It’s certainly hard to find good kickers.

“It’s kind of, in a lot of ways, survival of the fittest. It goes back to a very archaic way, but football is a very difficult sport and because there’s a limited roster size you do give everyone a chance to make the team. It’s a challenging camp, challenging offseason and then the coach decides, or the owner decides, or the general manager decides who makes it and who doesn’t. Everyone is trying to win games. The NFL is a very competitive landscape. I believe that the owners try to put the best people on the field in order to give their teams the best chance to win.”

While Brady clearly isn’t against the idea of a woman kicking in the NFL, he believes breaking that barrier shouldn’t come at the expense of winning football games. A serial Super Bowl winner like Brady saying that shouldn’t surprise anyone.