Tom Brady likely will have a fair amount of suitors should he reach free agency, but the Patriots will have the first crack at the future Hall of Famer.
Brady is eligible to hit the open market for the first time in his career when the new NFL year begins March 18. The 42-year-old will have the opportunity to speak with teams outside of New England beginning two days prior when the league’s legal tampering period opens. As such, the Patriots have three weeks to make the most of the time they have as the exclusive negotiating rights holder of arguably the greatest football player who’s ever lived.
According to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer, Brady has yet to sit down with Patriots brass and talk shop, but a 1-on-1 conversation between Brady and his longtime head coach could make or break the quarterback’s future in Foxboro.
“After kicking this around with some people the last few days, here’s what I think should determine the Tom Brady Saga—a real, honest sitdown between the quarterback and his head coach,” Breer wrote in his latest Monday Morning Quarterback column for Sports Illustrated. “It hasn’t happened yet. Unless Brady has the appetite to go to Indy this week, it won’t happen during the combine either. But at this point, that’s what needs to happen. My understanding is Bill Belichick hasn’t closed the door on Brady returning, nor has Brady determined he’s moving on. My guess? I think Belichick has a set of terms under which he’d bring Brady back. I think Brady has a set of terms under which he’d come back. And the two sides need to figure out if they can make those two things mesh.”
Brady and Belichick have been able to overcome any and all obstacles over the past two decades. That said, we’re now dealing with an unprecedented situation. Brady, who still appears capable of playing at a high level despite being past his prime, will turn 43 shortly before the start of the 2020 season. This presents a tough spot for Belichick, who notoriously cuts bait with players a year or two early as opposed to a year or two late.
So while Brady marching on with the Patriots appears to be the likeliest scenario, you’d be foolish to set anything in stone at this point in time.
