According to Dana White, Jon Gruden said “thanks, but no thanks” when Tom Brady became a free agent for the first time in his storied NFL career.
White apparently brokered a deal for both Brady and Rob Gronkowski to join the Raiders in March of 2020. Per the UFC president, the parties were so far along in the process that the star quarterback was looking for houses in the Las Vegas area. But Gruden, for whatever reason, “blew the deal up” before the sides could reach the finish line and the QB-tight end tandem ultimately signed with the Buccaneers.
Chris Simms, who played under Gruden in Tampa Bay, seemingly wasn’t surprised the former head coach passed on the chance to land Brady.
“Oh, he didn’t want to deal with the pressure of Tom Brady,” Simms said on NBC Sports’ “ProFootballTalk,” as transcribed by Joe Bucs Fan. “He wasn’t going to have excuses to get out of that one, in case things didn’t work. He couldn’t blame Tom Brady if the offense didn’t work. He would lose control a little bit, too, because Brady was going to be able to talk to (Raiders owner) Mark Davis. ‘I want this.’ That’s where I find it fascinating.
“Even when I was in Tampa and there was the Brett Favre flirting and he ultimately went to the Jets, I always wondered if Gruden really wanted Brett Favre, either? I really did. The Glazer family wants him, but does Gruden really want him?”
Another former player of Gruden’s has a different theory on why Brady didn’t end up in Las Vegas. Ex-Raiders offensive lineman Lincoln Kennedy simply believes Gruden had too much loyalty toward Derek Carr.
