NFL
Has Tom Brady given any clues about his future?
The Buccaneers quarterback will turn 45 in August. Could he be thinking about retiring at the end of the season? Here’s what we know.
Questions surrounding Tom Brady’s future usually crop up at this stage of the season. At 44, he is the oldest player who remains active in the NFL but what are the chances of him continuing for another season or deciding to definitely call time on his playing career this summer?
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Brady still undecided on future
Brady, who will turn 45 in August, has another year to run on his contract with the Buccaneers plus three void years; so in theory, bar any injury setbacks, he could keep going until 2025. Each of the remaining years are voidable, which means that Brady won't be under contract unless he agrees a new deal. He will be free to call it quits when he feels the moment is right.
Brady has given some hints as to when he sees his curtain call – and it probably won’t be when he hits his half century as Bucs GM Jason Licht suggested. "I’ve always said 45 was the age that I wanted to reach and that was my goal,” he told USA Today last summer. “Do I see myself still playing at 50? That’s a long time - even for me”.
However, just three months after making those comments, Brady confessed that it is feasible that he may be still around for the 2027 Super Bowl. "Wow. Seems to be a really hot question lately - Can Tom Brady play until 50? Like, 50 years old? Fifty...” he asked himself in the Tommy & Gronky show back in September of last year.
He was reticent when quizzed about his career and future more recently. “Twenty two years… it’s gone really fast. Man, I can’t believe we’ve made it this far,” he told NFL Network's Willie McGinest . “I think when I thought about that [playing until he’s 50], that was probably 10 years ago you know and now I’m kinda here so… Then I felt that was a great goal to set, and I still had that goal of wanting to get to 45 so we’ll see how it goes. I’m just pretty much in unchartered territory”.
Games of the season
First and foremost on Brady’s mind will be getting through tonight’s Divisional Round playoff against the Rams and booking a place in the Championship game. That, for now, has to be his priority.