{"id":45029,"date":"2018-06-19T20:41:41","date_gmt":"2018-06-20T00:41:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lwosonnfl.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/?p=45029"},"modified":"2018-06-19T20:41:41","modified_gmt":"2018-06-20T00:41:41","slug":"tom-brady-isnt-going-anywhere","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2018\/06\/19\/tom-brady-isnt-going-anywhere\/","title":{"rendered":"Tom Brady Isn’t Going Anywhere"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2018 off-season has been a whirlwind adventure for New England Patriots<\/a> fans. Between losing several fan favorites in free agency to reported tension between Bill Belichick<\/strong> and Tom Brady<\/a><\/strong> to rumors of Rob Gronkowski<\/a><\/strong>\u2019s retirement, this off-season has been one of the longest in recent memory. However, the biggest worry of them all is off the table. Tom Brady isn\u2019t going anywhere, and he\u2019s all but confirmed he\u2019s aiming to play until he\u2019s 45.<\/p>\n

Patriots Fans Rejoice: Tom Brady Isn\u2019t Going Anywhere<\/h1>\n

Brady\u2019s \u201cimminent\u201d retirement has been in the news for the majority of 2018\u00a0and picked up steam after the series finale of \u201cTom vs. Time\u201d. In the show’s climax, Brady implied that the competitive fire within him might soon be going out. He said that he wants to be more present in his children\u2019s lives\u00a0and that the end of his career was in sight.<\/p>\n

The talk behind this rumor only grew after a recent interview with\u00a0<\/span>Oprah Winfrey. One of the most eye-opening quotes from the 45-minute interview came when Brady said that \u201c\u2026there\u2019s definitely an end coming, sooner rather than later.\u201d While he didn\u2019t give a specific timeframe, some fans took that to mean that 2018 would be his last season\u00a0or 2019 at the absolute latest.<\/p>\n

However, Brady silenced those talks on an Instagram post. On a post by ESPN regarding Brady\u2019s possible retirement, Brady commented \u201ccuarenta y cinco\u201d, which is Spanish for 45. Brady states many times before that he intends to play until at least 45, so it\u2019s easy to read into what Brady\u2019s cryptic comment referred to.<\/p>\n

\"Tom<\/p>\n

The question now becomes is Brady telling the truth? Does Brady truly intend to play until 45, or is he just trying to save face following the Oprah interview? While it\u2019s impossible to know for sure, there are several reasons to believe Brady\u2019s Instagram comment was nothing but the truth.<\/p>\n

Does Brady Mean It?<\/h2>\n

Historically, Brady has always said that he wants to keep his football career alive as long as possible. Despite his advanced age, he says football has never been easier for him<\/a>, and his body has never felt better.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have the answers to the test now\u2026[i]t\u2019s not as hard as it used to be,\u201d Brady said following Super Bowl LI. While it may sound arrogant, it\u2019s true. Brady has played the game for so long that there\u2019s no defense he hasn\u2019t seen. He\u2019s at the top of his game, and his three-year stretch from 2015-2017 rivals any in his career. He\u2019s clearly not wearing down, so it\u2019s not like a lack of production could be playing into early retirement thoughts<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Additionally, he\u2019s stated as recently as 2017 that he wants to play several more seasons. \u201cI\u2019d like to play until my mid-40\u2019s, then I\u2019ll make my decision,\u201d Brady said roughly a year and a half ago. Brady is entering his age-41 season, so that means he should have at least three more seasons left in the tank.<\/p>\n

There are countless more examples of Brady expressing the desire to play for as long as he humanly can. Prior to the 2014 season, Brady famously declared \u201c[w]hen I suck, I\u2019ll retire.\u201d Brady just won MVP, so he certainly doesn\u2019t suck yet. His workout and diet routine is one of the most intense in sports,\u00a0and he devoted basically his whole life to sustain his play. If he didn\u2019t plan on doing this for a while, he wouldn\u2019t sacrifice this much for the sport.<\/p>\n

All of this is to say that this makes his comments to Oprah all that more perplexing. However, when analyzing his comments a little deeper, it\u2019s clear that Brady is not contemplating retirement for the immediate future.<\/p>\n

Reading Into the Oprah Interview<\/h2>\n

Brady says that he wants to play into his mid-40\u2019s, but he also said that he sees an end coming \u201csooner, rather than later.\u201d While these appear to be contradictory statements, they\u2019re actually not. Both statements can be true, and that\u2019s due to the longevity of Brady\u2019s career.<\/p>\n

Tom Brady entered the NFL in 2000 and is now entering his 19th<\/sup> season in the league. He\u2019ll be 41 years old on opening day, and only four years away from being 45. By the standards of Brady\u2019s long career, four years is not that long a time. In order for the end to be later, rather than sooner, Brady would need to play until the 2039 season. That\u2019s obviously not going to happen, so it shouldn\u2019t surprise anyone that Brady is closer to the end of his career than the beginning.<\/p>\n

Additionally, there were several other quotes from the Oprah interview which show that Brady\u2019s competitive fire has never burned brighter. At one point, Oprah asked about the sacrifices Brady makes for his career, and Brady gave an enlightening answer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI put a lot into it. I\u2019ve got decisions in the course of the day…so when you fail in your career, you look at all those decisions in your life and you go, is it worth it?… Why don\u2019t I just give a [crap] less? But I don\u2019t think that\u2019s my personality, because I really do care. When I look at my teammates, I want them to know that I care.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brady acknowledges that he\u2019s sacrificed a lot for football, including a lot of time with his family. However, he also states that he\u2019s not the type of person to let those sacrifices stop him. His heart is still in the game, and he still loves playing football.<\/p>\n

Last Word on Brady<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s not natural for a quarterback to remain this productive this late into their career. Most ordinary human beings wouldn\u2019t want to make the sacrifices Brady does on a daily basis after accomplishing all he has accomplished.<\/p>\n

However, that\u2019s what makes Brady so great. His competitive fire is burning as strong as ever, and he\u2019ll be the Patriots quarterback for at least the next three years. Contrarily, Father Time is still undefeated, and Brady knows that. Ideally, Brady will make it until 45, but no matter how much time is left, savor every second of it. There\u2019s never going to be anything like this again.<\/p>\n

Main photo:
\nEmbed from Getty Images<\/a>