We are officially on Tom Brady watch.
The 45-year-old Brady faltered in the Buccaneers’ 31-14 opening round playoff loss to the Cowboys on Monday night, completing 35 of his 66 passes for 351 yards — an average of 5.3 yards per attempt — and two touchdowns. He also threw a costly interception in the end zone.
With his contract set to expire, options for Brady include a return to the NFL for a 24th season, going into the Fox Sports broadcast booth or perhaps a more leisurely retirement into a pursuit of business and hobbies outside of football.
There are a number of feasible scenarios for Brady to return to the NFL.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Brady has spent his last three seasons in Tampa, winning a Super Bowl in his first season there. The team has won the NFC South all three years. Their top two receivers, Chris Godwin and Mike Evans, are under contract.
While the Bucs won their division, they finished with an 8-9 record in the team’s first year with Todd Bowles as head coach after Bruce Arians moved into a front office role. It was also Brady’s first losing season in the NFL. There have been rumors that offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich could be on the hot seat after Brady’s offense struggled with fluidity.
New England Patriots
Brady played for 20 seasons in New England under Bill Belichick and they won six Super Bowls together. In November, reporter Jeff Howe of The Athletic, who has covered the Patriots for many years, floated a possible reunion. “Don’t ever write off the Patriots,” Howe wrote, adding that Brady and Belichick “still have an abundance of respect for one another.”
Belichick announced last week that the team will be looking to fill its offensive coordinator position after Matt Patricia, who effectively ran the offense despite not formally having that title, could not lead the unit to better production with quarterback Mac Jones.
Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins have gone after Brady before, with owner Stephen Ross getting hit with punishment after an NFL investigation revealed the team tampered in trying to put together a package deal with Brady at QB and Sean Payton as head coach.
Tua Tagovailoa played well when healthy in head coach Mike McDaniel’s first season as head coach, but there is concern about his long-term durability. He missed four regular season games plus the team’s opening round playoff loss to the Bills after sustaining three concussions.
Las Vegas Raiders
This would be a reunion between Brady and longtime former Patriots offensive coordinator, Josh McDaniels. All signs point to the franchise parting ways with Derek Carr, who has been their starting quarterback for nine years, this offseason.
Other teams that are plausibly in the market for a new starting quarterback include the Titans, Saints, Panthers, Falcons, Colts, Texans and Commanders.
Fox Broadcast Booth
Last offseason, Brady signed a long-term deal to be the top color commentator for Fox Sports’ NFL coverage when he retired. The Post’s Andrew Marchand reported it to be a 10-year deal worth a total of $375 million. Greg Olsen spent his first season in the role this year alongside Kevin Burkhardt. The duo exceeded expectations after Joe Buck and Troy Aikman left for ESPN.
Brady and model Gisele Bündchen got divorced in October after 13 years of marriage. The two share a son and a daughter. Brady also has a son, with actress Bridget Moynahan.
Brady has been involved with a number of business ventures, ranging from fashion to fitness and wellness to the failed crypto exchange FTX.