Tom Brady on retirement reports: "When the time's right I'll be ready to make a decision"
Speaking on the Let's Go! podcast following reports that he is to retire from the NFL, Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady said he's yet to make a decision on his future.
In the run-up to the AFC and NFC Championship Games at the weekend, the NFL was hit by bombshell media reports that Tom Brady was about to retire.
The claims were then denied by Brady’s father, while his agent, Don Yee, issued a statement saying the quarterback "will be the only person to express his plans with complete accuracy". But the player himself remained silent… until now.
"When the time's right I'll be ready to make a decision"
Speaking on the podcast Let’s Go! on Monday, the seven-time Super Bowl winner said he is yet to make a call on whether to bring an end to his 22-year NFL career.
“I’m just still going through the process that I said I was going through,” Brady said. “Sometimes it takes some time to really evaluate how you feel, what you want to do and I think when the time’s right I’ll be ready to make a decision one way or another.”
Brady "disappointed" reports distracted from big weekend of NFL action
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers star admitted he was “disappointed” that reports of his retirement overshadowed Sunday’s Conference Championships, which saw the Cincinnati Bengals and the Los Angeles Rams book their spots at Super Bowl LVI.
“I was actually a little bit disappointed that that would actually play some part of what’s going on in NFL football, which to me has been such an amazing sport and it’s a great sport and the focus should be on those great games,” Brady said.
“For me, I was just trying to enjoy a nice weekend; it didn’t quite turn out that way, because my phone got really busy, but that’s just part of being in the situation I’m in.”
"I understand that's the environment we're in"
However, the 44-year-old accepted that the premature reports of his retirement are a product of today's “era of information”.
“We’re in such an era of information and people want to be in front of the news often, and I totally understand that,” he said. “I understand that’s the environment we’re in.
“But for me, literally it’s day to day for me. I’m just trying to do the best I can every day and I’ll evaluate things as they come, try to make a great decision for me and my family.
“I’ll know when the time is right. I’m very blessed to have played as long as I have, and as things have gone in the later parts of my career, whether that was five years ago or even this year, there’s been a lot of interest in when I’m going to stop playing, and I understand that.
“It’s not that I don’t recognise that; it’s just, when I know, I’ll know, and when I don’t know, I don’t know, and I’m not going to race to some conclusion about that.”