So, what if the market for Tom Brady isn’t as robust as we once thought?
It looks like it might be that way.
Of course, the legendary quarterback is set to hit free agency for the first time in his career. While a slew of teams has been floated as potential landing spots for him, so far there’s been little substantiated info — to the point where Brady told a former coach that no one knows anything.
Given Brady’s body of work, it was expected that plenty of teams would come calling once the legal tampering period began March 16. But during an appearance on “Get Up!” ESPN’s Dianna Russini indicated that Brady might actually be more interested in other teams than they are in him.
“I think at this point right now, Brady’s interest in other teams outweighs the amount of teams that are interested (in him),” Russini said, via WEEI.
“… I think the team that we need to put back up on the board that we’re walking away from is New England,” he said. “I think for whatever reason, because of some of the reporting at ESPN has been excellent, at least from the side of Brady, that he’s interested to see what the market is. But, what is that market going to be?
“I don’t think any of us have really considered that maybe some of this woo’ing or some of the interest that is put out there on the side of Brady is to save him embarrassment is the market isn’t as robust as you would think for Tom Brady. … When you start looking at it and breaking down the details of it, is it really the smart decision for your organization? I think there’s a very good amount of teams out there who do not believe Tom Brady is their answer.”
Russini did indicate that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers “would love” to sign Brady, so make of that what you will.
Regardless, it is easy to see what teams would be unwilling to mortgage their future for a couple years of Brady. He’ll be 43 years old when next regular season begins, and he’s coming off a campaign where he certainly regressed. You can attribute that to the lack of weapons, but that excuse only goes so far. That said, he is, after all, Tom Brady, so you can understand why teams would be willing to take the risk.
The new league year begins March 18 at 4 p.m. ET, at which point Brady will become a free agent.
