One of the biggest free agent stories this off season is the landing spot of Tom Brady in 2020. Arguably one of the greatest to ever step on a football field, Brady has been a wrecking ball for the rest of the AFC East.
Since the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine last week, reports have mostly indicated that there’s a negative vibe between the team and Hall of Famer. The latest indicates more of that.
Per Patriots Wire, there was a conversation by phone between head coach Bill Belichick and Brady to work out some details pertaining to Brady returning to New England. Also, those same reports claim that the call did not sound good for a Brady return to the Patriots in 2020.
While this could be quite the bombshell, all reports should be taken with a grain of salt, until officially announced by the parties directly involved. There also has been no indication that the two sides won’t continue talking.
It’s understandable though, if you can look at this through the eyes of Brady. Brady has sacrificed a higher and fair salary for the sake of the team, and to put adequate talent around him, and this season, that did not occur. While other quarterbacks around the league have made significantly more money from their respective teams than he did, Brady could finally wants a return on his selflessness from a financial standpoint.
The report of the phone call however, corroborates with several stories that have come out since the conclusion of the Patriots season against the Titans over Wild Card weekend. There has been numerous discussions about Brady being unhappy with his situation in New England, and an apparent rift that has grown between himself and Belichick over the last several years.
Julian Edelman and Brady were even seen at a Syracuse basketball game last week, and an on-camera moment that raised some eyebrows. Edelman kept saying “He’s coming back, he’s coming back” to which Brady smirked and possibly said “he”s not” There was even video of a video chat between Brady and Titans head coach Mike Vrabel, leading some to speculate that he might have a future in Tennessee.
Aside from Tennessee, there are several other potential and rumored destinations for the 42-year-old quarterback, including the Los Angeles Chargers, New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Indianapolis Colts, Las Vegas Raiders, Dallas Cowboys and more recently, the San Francisco 49ers. Current betting odds have a return to New England as most likely, but followed closely by signing with the Raiders and Titans with many Las Vegas oddsmakers.
Whatever does transpire this off season between Brady and the Patriots organization, it will have ripple effects across the NFL, and sure to truly open up the competition in the AFC East next year, for the first time since the Brady-Belichick era began.
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