Update: Tuesday, Feb. 1, 9:30 AM
Tom Brady is expected to announce his retirement from football after 22 seasons and seven Super Bowl victories.
Brady is retiring as the NFL’s all-time leader in Super Bowl wins, Super Bowl MVPs, Pro Bowl appearances, passing touchdowns, passing yards, career wins, playoff yards, playoff touchdowns, playoff wins and Super Bowl appearances. The three-time NFL MVP and six-time All-Pro is widely regarded as the greatest quarterback in football history.
Multiple reports, including ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Jeff Darlington, broke the news on Saturday that Brady, 44, plans to retire.
Since the ESPN story, other reports surfaced saying Brady had informed the Buccaneers that he hadn’t yet made a final decision. All the speculation ended officially on Tuesday, when Brady released a lengthy statement on Instagram.
Brady, who was born and raised in San Mateo, spent 20 seasons with the New England Patriots and two with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he was most recently bounced from the playoffs by the Los Angeles Rams after leading a 24-point comeback.
In his 22 seasons, Brady has appeared in 10 Super Bowls, including a final victory in 2021 with Tampa Bay.
ESPN reported that Brady’s decision is based on several factors, including his family and health. He recently said on the “Let’s Go” podcast with Jim Gray that he is “satisfied” with his career.
“It’s what we want as a family,” Brady told Gray. “And I’m going to spend a lot of time with them and figure out in the future what’s next.”
“I’ll know when I know,” Brady said during the podcast. “I think for all of us, you know, we can all decompress a bit. It’s been six straight months of football. Every day consumed by day in and day out football. And I think now it’s just some time to spend some time with my family and spend some time with my kids.”
As his career extended, Brady got more involved with TB12 Sports — his health and wellness company — and launched his own production company, 199 Productions (named after where he was selected in the 2000 Draft). He’s expected to shift his focus to new endeavors in retirement, according to ESPN.
Brady had previously said he could play until he was 50 or retire whenever he sucked.
Instead of waiting until his performance dipped, Brady is going out while still, inexplicably, in his prime — that is if in fact he does retire. This season with the Buccaneers, he broke the single-season completion record and led the NFL in passing yards and touchdowns.