Brady leaves Patriots for Tampa Bay. Will Belichick prove right in letting him go? | Opinion
It was not entirely unexpected, him leaving. The whispers it might happen had been growing. Yet when the news it was happening broke Tuesday it stunned the NFL and instantly became the biggest story in free agency and in all of sports — sports such as it is as America hunkers down against the coronavirus pandemic.
Even when you expect a punch and brace for it, it still hits you hard.
So the greatest quarterback in the history of football is walking away from the sport’s greatest coach and greatest dynasty.
Tom Brady, free agent, stopped being a New England Patriot on Tuesday.
And changed uniforms fast.
Say it, repeat it, get used to: It’s Tom Brady of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers now.
After 20 seasons, 17 AFC East titles, nine Super Bowls, six Super Bowl wins, 14 Pro Bowls and the second-most passing yards and touchdown passes in NFL history, the most accomplished, decorated athlete in this or perhaps any sport left home.
He revealed his intention on social media (of course), in lengthy Instagram posts full of gratefulness for Patriots fans, the Robert Kraft family, coach Bill Belichick and two decades of teammates.
Yes, even Belichick, if only for appearances.
It is obvious Brady leaving is a parting with hurt feelings. It ended ugly.
Kraft put out a statement Tuesday making clear he wanted Brady back; that leaving was Brady’s decision.
Which brings us to Belichick.
Brady’s posts notably did not explain why he is leaving, but no mind-reading is required to have a sense of it. Belichick had been laissez faire about re-signing him, making pretty apparent his being perfectly OK with moving on from a QB who will be 43 when next season starts, showed noticeable decline last year, and yet still commands huge money.
Brady’s Instagram posts also did not discuss his intentions from here, but he is not retiring and, clearly, he would not have announced he’s leaving New England without a certain landing spot waiting for him.
I’d said in the initial iteration of this column online at noon Tuesday, “Do not be surprised if he signs with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which is what I am hearing.” The Bucs seemed ready to move on from Jameis Winston, who threw 30 interceptions last year. But were they ready enough to take on a superstar QB with the baggage of age, contract and decline? Apparently so.
Brady’s options had become limited, especially when it became apparent to him Belichick would just as soon see him leave.
The Tennessee Titans, coached by Brady’s former teammate Mike Vrabel, were a legitimate possibility, seemingly the favorite. But that ended suddenly with Tennessee deciding to stick with Ryan Tannehill and lavishing upon him a big free agent deal.
San Francisco was rumored a possibility, with Brady replacing former Pats understudy Jimmy Garoppolo, but that was never real. Apparently Brady (or at least his agent) liked that idea a lot more than the 49ers did.
After the Bucs, the Chargers emerged as the second-favorite landing spot for Brady, based on odds out Tuesday from sportsbetting.ag.
Heck, I wrote a column on Jan. 6 suggesting that signing Brady and then drafting Tua Tagovailoa would be a “dream ticket” for the Dolphins. Might Miami agree? Might there be an allure for Brady in staying in the division and sticking it to Belichick? There seemed a chance, until reports of Tampa Bay coalesced late Tuesday.
Brady leaving New England for Tampa Bay is the biggest news of this NFL offseason, even bigger than players narrowly approving the new collective bargaining agreement that will mean 17-game seasons starting in 2021.
The previous biggest free agent news was the Houston Texans’ bone-headed trade of star receiver DeAndre Hopkins to Arizona.
Dolphins fans were excited about their team’s very active first day of free agency, spending big to sign cornerback Byron Jones, defensive end Shaq Lawson, tackle Ereck Flowers and linebacker Kyle Van Noy. (We’ll assess and grade Miami’s free agency work in an upcoming column.)
Brady changing uniforms overwhelms everything in the NFL, but it also should be of particular interest and impact to Dolphins fans.
How will this affect or change the paradigm in the AFC East? Do the Fins, Bills and Jets not having to play him twice a year mean a wide-open division now? Or does Brady’s age and evident recent decline offset that impact?
And who will replace Brady in New England? Do the Pats go with unproven 23-year-old backup Jarrett Stidham? Or will they go shopping for maybe Andy Dalton or Winston? Or Cam Newton?
The Bills must think themselves the division favorite now. Surely the Dolphins and Jets must feel a fresh new era is unfolding with the nemesis Brady finally gone.
Somewhere, though, a man is smiling, and relishing the new challenge ahead.
His name is Bill Belichick.
And staying on top in the AFC East without Brady is now the only way for him to prove he was right in letting him go.
This story was originally published March 17, 2020 at 11:45 AM.
