Tom Brady Not Returning To Patriots, Says ESPN Insider
Tom Brady is not returning to the Patriots, says one ESPN insider.
Brady is less than a month away from becoming an unrestricted free agent.
Despite spending the past 20 years with New England, he has not offered much in the way of signals that he wants to return. Through the media, he has essentially outlined two priorities for anyone that wants to sign him.
First and foremost, he wants to be paid his worth. After repeatedly taking pay cuts for the sake of fielding competitive Patriots teams, the 42-year-old wants what will likely be his final NFL contract to be lucrative.
Secondly, he wants to play for a competitive team where he has a lot of talent alongside him. Ever since tight end Rob Gronkowski retired, Brady has made it no secret that he has been frustrated with the lack of offensive weapons at his disposal.
At the moment, outside of the Patriots, there are a handful of other teams vying for his services next year. The Los Angeles Chargers, Las Vegas Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans and Miami Dolphins are all considered potential candidates – with some being slighter higher favorites than others.
Recently, ESPN NFL insider Jeff Darlington appeared on ESPN’s Get Up and said that is fairly confident at this stage that Brady is not returning to the Patriots. This goes against popular wisdom, wherein most think he will come back.
ESPN’s @JeffDarlington on @GetUpESPN: “I’m now at the point where I would be stunned if Tom Brady went back to New England.”
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 27, 2020
“I’m now at the point where I would be stunned if Tom Brady went back to New England,” he said.
In a recent Boston Herald report, NFL insider Karen Guregian notes that Brady has yet to be contacted by the Patriots in any capacity regarding a possible return to the team that drafted him.
In prior interviews, Darlington indicated that he viewed the Chargers, Raiders and Titans as likely candidates to steal Brady away if he ultimately departs New England.
Where will the 42-year-old ultimately end up when it is all said and done? We are less than a month away from getting out answer.
Related: Panthers Are Signing Ryan Tannehill To Replace Cam Newton?
Jennifer Withers Hoey is a former Business Development Manager who transitioned to writing about sports. With valuable connections all over the West Coast, she has used those contacts to break some of the most interesting stories pertaining to the Portland Trail Blazers, Oregon Ducks, LA Lakers, LA Clippers, Seattle Supersonics (RIP), and more.
