Tom Brady might give Patriots fans the moment they've been waiting for.
Despite a weekend filled with confusion, all indications are that Brady soon will formally announce his retirement from the NFL. Understandably, many New Englanders are wondering whether the 44-year-old will find a way to retire with the franchise for which he played 20 remarkable seasons. Robert Kraft openly lobbied for it while speaking before the Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers played in October, whereas Brady deflected questions about it during his postgame news conference.
During a "The Greg Hill Show" WEEI appearance Monday morning, ESPN investigative journalist Seth Wickersham, who was the first to hint at Brady's potential retirement, discussed the possibility of the star quarterback returning to the Patriots in some capacity.
"I think that's strong," Wickersham said when asked about the chances of Brady retiring with the Patriots. "I don't know exactly how it would work out, if Tom would sign a one-day contract and officially retire with the Patriots, or figure out a way to do it, you know, after the press conference or whatever it is he ends up doing.
"But I think that there was some indication of that (in October) ... that some of the issues that were going on between Brady and the Patriots have been resolved to an extent, and the idea of him coming back to New England for a day and retiring in those colors would be something that's on the table. That said, I don't know. Brady's obviously very proud of what he did in Tampa. And I think he's proud of what he did in New England, but what they did in Tampa Bay, I think he's as proud of that as anything he's accomplished in his career."
So, while it sounds like Brady at least could sign on for a day of celebration in Foxboro, fans probably shouldn't expect him to just act like his two years with the Buccaneers never happened -- nor should they.
As for a timetable for Brady's announcement, Wickersham speculated it could arrive "sooner rather than later." For what it's worth, Brady is scheduled to speak during Monday's episode of his "Let's Go!" podcast.
