Thank You, TB12

Image Courtesy of ESPN

By Jonathan Norman 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady retired on Tuesday after a 22-year career. The 44-year-old quarterback took to his Instagram to officially announce his decision. 

ESPN first reported that Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady was retiring on Saturday, citing unknown sources. Then TB12sports, Brady’s health, and wellness company, also announced that the quarterback would retire on social media. After that, the NFL world began reacting to the news on social media, and even the NFL’s Twitter account posted messages honoring Brady.  

Shortly after all these heartwarming messages, TB12sports deleted their tweet, and Brady’s agent, Don Yee, said only Brady himself would officially announce his retirement. Brady’s father, Tom Brady Sr., also said that his son has yet to decide on his retirement.

Brady’s Instagram post ended all speculation and officially marked the end of his career. He thanked the Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans, his Buccaneers teammates, and coaches in his post. Shockingly, Brady did not mention the New England Patriots in his retirement post, where Brady spent the first 20 years of his career. However, he later thanked them in an Instagram story.

Brady will go down as one of the greatest, if not the greatest, players in NFL history. After a 22-year career, Brady leads the NFL in all-time passing yards (84,520) and touchdowns (624). Moreover, he holds both of these records with a pretty comfortable margin. The following active player closest to surpassing his all-time passing yards record is Atlanta Falcons veteran quarterback Matt Ryan with 59,735 yards. Then, the next active player closest to surpassing his all-time touchdown record is Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rogers (who has publicly expressed the possibility of retiring) with 449.

Brady won three NFL MVP awards, was selected to the Pro Bowl 15 times, and was named first-team All-Pro three times. He currently has a record of 243-73 in the regular season and 35-12 in the playoffs.

The greatest thing about Brady’s career has to be his 7 Super Bowl rings, which amount to more championships than any NFL franchise. Brady won six of those rings with the New England Patriots, where Brady, alongside legendary coach Bill Belichick, solidified one of the greatest dynasties in NFL history. 

 After 20 years as a New England Patriot, Brady left to join the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who had not won a playoff game in 18 years. However, he led them to a championship in his first season and won his fifth Super Bowl MVP.

At 44 years of age, Brady was the oldest active player in the NFL this past season but continued to dominate. This season Brady led the NFL in yards passing (5,316), touchdowns (43), completions (485), and attempts (719). He also has the second-best odds, according to Odds-Shark, to win this season’s NFL MVP behind Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were poised to make another Super Bowl run, but the Los Angeles Rams stopped them in the divisional round. In this game, Brady rallied his team from being down 27-3 to being tied at 27. In the final seconds of the game, the Los Angeles Rams could rush down the field and score a last-second field goal to win the game 30 to 27.  

With an MVP-level season and nearly reaching his 14th conference championship game, Brady did not seem to be slowing down as older players often do. However, his stellar play has raised many questions about why the legendary quarterback is retiring. Brady said in his Instagram post that he now wishes to focus his time and energy on other things, including his family and his other business ventures, such as TB12sports. 

Tom Brady’s career is truly a fantastic story. He was a sixth-round pick from Michigan who came into the NFL as a third-string quarterback. He will now retire as one of the greatest players to ever play the game and be a first-ballot induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Brady’s retirement marked the end of an era for the NFL, and fans, players, and coaches alike all came together to thank Brady for his dedication to the game of football.