“I enjoyed my NFL career but the time has come for me to focus my time and energy on other things,” he wrote on his Twitter account. I’ve always thought of American football as an all-or-nothing sport: if there isn’t 100% commitment to the competition, then you won’t be successful, and success is what I like the most in this game […]. This is something difficult for me to write, but let’s go: this involvement in the competition is over. »
“I did a lot of thinking work last week, and I asked myself some difficult questions, Brady clarifies in his message. And I’m so proud of what we’ve accomplished. My teammates, coaches, opponents, and fans deserve me to be 100%, but now it’s best that I leave the field to the next generation of dedicated and committed athletes.”
Eliminated by the Los Angeles Rams (30-27) in the NFL conference semifinals 10 days ago, the Tampa Bay quarterback left the league on an exceptional individual season (5,316 yards and 43 touchdowns) . He could also win a fourth MVP trophy of the season in a few days, which would make him the oldest player to receive this honor.
Brady will have played 22 years in the NFL. He had arrived on tiptoe in 2000, selected only in the sixth round of the draft by the New England Patriots, without any assurance of becoming the starting quarterback of the team. After a season of polishing the sidelines, his legend had however begun.
At the start of the 2001 season, Brady had taken advantage of the injury of Drew Bledsoe, the star QB of New England, to impose himself at the head of the Patriots. And, the same year, he had guided them to their first Super Bowl victory. Tom Brady was then crowned again in 2004 and 2005.
However, he had experienced a blunder in 2007, when New England, undefeated in the regular season and then the play-offs, was unexpectedly beaten in the Super Bowl by the New York Giants (17-14). Brady and the Patriots went on to be champions again in 2015, 2017 and 2019.
The masterpiece of 2017
The Super Bowl disputed in February 2017 is undoubtedly the masterpiece of the New England quarterback. His team was led 28-3 by the Atlanta Falcons in the second half, but Tom Brady finally snatched victory (34-28 ap).
In 2020, he had made a new start, joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. From this average team, he had helped to make a champion. In February 2021, Tampa Bay was crowned in the Super Bowl, after correcting the Kansas City Chiefs (31-9), defending champions.
