Tom Brady officially announces his retirement from the NFL
"I have loved my NFL career, and now it is time to focus my time and energy on other things that require my attention."
It’s official: Tom Brady is calling it a career.
The legendary quarterback announced his decision to retire from the NFL on his Instagram page Tuesday morning, citing the “physical, mental and emotional challenge of playing the game.”
“It is difficult for me to write, but here it goes: I am not going to make that competitive commitment anymore. I have loved my NFL career, and now it is time to focus my time and energy on other things that require my attention,” he wrote.
The news breaks after ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Jeff Darlington released a report this weekend stating Brady would likely retire in the coming days.
The quarterback leaves the game as the most accomplished player in league history, owning NFL records in passing yards, touchdowns, playoff victories and winning an unmatched seven Super Bowl titles–six of which came in New England with the Patriots.
But while Brady thanked “all of the great players and coaches I was privileged to play the game with,” he made no specific mention to his 20 years with the New England Patriots in the announcement, only acknowledging his time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
He did, however, extensively thank the Patriots organization after departing for Tampa Bay in 2020, saying he “couldn’t be the man I am today” without the relationships he built in Foxborough.
Also, ESPN’s Seth Wickersham said Monday he believed Brady and New England had repaired their rift enough for the quarterback to possibly return and retire as a member of the Patriots organization. If that happened, it could go a long way to smoothing over the initial shock of the team’s exclusion from his retirement announcement.
For now, though, we know one thing: Tom Brady is done playing professional football, and there will never be another career like his.
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