Tom Brady is calling it a career once again. This time around, it’s for real and marks the last time we’ll see the seven-time Super Bowl champion and five-time Super Bowl MVP in a helmet and shoulder pads. Brady proclaimed that he’ll be stepping away from the game after 23 seasons on Feb. 1 a few weeks following Tampa Bay’s playoff loss to the Dallas Cowboys to wrap up Super Wild Card Weekend. On Friday, he backed up his words with action, filing a letter with the NFL and the NFL Players’ Association to solidify the conclusion of his football playing career, according to ESPN.
The 45-year-old will officially be eligible to be enshrined as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2028. Brady said he plans to start his the next chapter of his life, his broadcasting career, with Fox Sports in “fall of 2024.”
“I’ll get to the point: I’m retiring for good,” Brady said in a post on Feb. 1. “Thank you guys for allowing me to live my absolute dream. I wouldn’t change a thing.”
Of course, this isn’t the first time that Brady has walked away from the game. Exactly one year ago from this announcement, the now-45-year-old quarterback initially announced his retirement, but then rescinded that move, calling off his retirement just forty days later saying that his “place is still on the field and not in the stands.” Now, Brady is finally ready to step off the field and begin a new chapter.
As he does that, he walks away as someone who is widely considered to be the greatest player of all time — the G.O.A.T. as he’s coined over the years. He first came into the NFL as the 199th overall pick in the 2000 NFL Draft out of Michigan and was selected by Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots. Brady spent that first season on the bench behind veteran quarterback Drew Bledsoe. Then, in Week 2 of the 2001 season, a devastating hit by Jets linebacker Mo Lewis knocked Bledsoe out of the game and effectively changed the trajectory of Brady’s career, the Patriots franchise, and the NFL at large.
The second-year quarterback came in, took hold of the starting job, and helped lead New England to a Super Bowl XXXVI title, the first in franchise history. Brady’s legend only continued to grow as that championship sparked a dynasty where he and the organization would win three Super Bowls in four seasons.
The Patriots continued to have sustained success under Brady following those…
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