Tom Brady is going to have plenty of options this spring. That much is clear.
We’re only a few days removed from the end of the 2019 season, and we already know of two teams reportedly prepared to make a run at Brady this offseason. That list likely will grow as the days and weeks pass, as there are several other teams across the league in need of quarterback help. And on top of what Brady brings to the field, adding arguably the greatest football player of all time would be a fool-proof business move.
But despite these prospects, Chris Simms doesn’t believe Brady will relocate this spring.
“… Ultimately, I just don’t see that happening. I don’t,” Simms said Tuesday on NBC Sports. “I know there’s a lot of things to be figured out, but one, I think the fact that Josh McDaniels stayed there in New England will be a big help as far as making Tom feel comfortable about coming back to New England. Also, again, I can’t imagine Brady wanting to go somewhere, you know, having to kind of reinvent himself as the leader in the locker room, try to get the offense the way he wants it and then who knows how the team’s gonna be. He’s there in a place already where all those things are in place and the team’s just missing one or two pieces and they might be in Super Bowl LV.
“I don’t think there’s any way. I don’t think he’ll do it. I don’t want to say this disrespectfully — I don’t think he’s got to the guts to go anywhere else. I think ultimately he’s going to sit back and go, ‘OK, yeah, I get a little disrespected probably by Bill Belichick and they’re a pain in the butt sometimes, but damn it’s pretty good here and we got a pretty good thing. I’m gonna stay here in New England.'”
The Patriots are prepared to make it worth Brady’s while to continue his career in Foxboro, as they’re reportedly willing to commit upward of $30 million annually in a new deal for the 42-year-old. It might not even take New England that much to re-sign Brady, though, as a strong supporting cast reportedly is taking precedence over a hefty payday.
As such, there really only might be one way Brady plays elsewhere in the 2020 season. The decision in New England reportedly will be left to Brady and Belichick to work out themselves, and Robert Kraft reportedly won’t overrule the Patriots coach if he decides it’s time to move on from the best player in franchise history.
