Tom Brady Bids Farewell to New England Patriots - Now What? Next Team Predictions

43-year-old NFL quarterback Tom Brady officially said goodbye to the New England Patriots in a Tweet he posted on Monday where he also thanked everyone in the organization from top to bottom who were involved in his twenty-year career with them.

Right up until his message went public, most football fans and experts alike figured Brady would end his GOAT football career playing for the team he has earned six Championships with, but he proved them wrong with his sincerely written farewell.

The only question that remains now is where old man Brady will play football in 2020 and (most likely) beyond, so we look at his most likely options, why each makes sense or not and the odds of where the world’s greatest quarterback will play out the final seasons of his Hall of Fame career.

What Did Brady’s Goodbye Tweet Say?

Brady’s final respectfully written message is addressed to the entire New England Patriots family, including owner Robert Kraft and his family, general manager and head coach Bill Belichick and the entire football organization and its fans.

The first thing that’s obvious when reading the Tweet is that Brady talks in past tense to start out with, so it becomes clear early on that this is his final farewell, and that proves to be true when towards the end he includes this fateful sentence:

“Although my football journey will take place elsewhere, I appreciate everything that we have achieved and am grateful for our incredible TEAM accomplishments.”

Here is the Tweet in its entirety:

FOREVER A PATRIOT pic.twitter.com/QSBOJBs4uy

— Tom Brady (@TomBrady) March 17, 2020

Why Didn’t Brady Stay With the Patriots?

Patriots owner Robert Kraft had been on the record saying his goal was to retain Brady, so it was assumed that he would figure out a way to keep his superstar quarterback from leaving the only NFL team he’s ever played for.

Brady seemed frustrated throughout last season, though, the result of being surrounded by young receivers who struggled with their routes instead of dependable veteran superstars like Rob Gronkowski and Phillip Dorsett.

It might be tempting to think that maybe Brady just got tired of the cold weather and brutal winters at Foxborough and would prefer to end his long football career playing under a lot more sunshine – easy to understand if it were true.

Here’s Brady’s Twitter response to that:

Tom Brady is 24-4 in his career when the temperature is below 30 degrees, he talked about his comfort playing in the cold since college, the fact they practice in it all the time, and gave us this pearl
“My mind doesn’t slow down in the cold, but their bodies do”

— Jay Feely (@jayfeely) January 20, 2019

Brady’s current financial net worth is estimated to be $180 million, and that doesn’t include his famous supermodel wife Gisele’s $488 million worth, so it stands to reason that money isn’t going to be the motivating factor in this situation for Brady.

This is certainly more about Brady’s football legacy, which is already at GOAT status (greatest of all time), but if he is also able to lead a completely different team to the promised land for yet another championship then his NFL career accomplishments would go forever unbeaten.

The “old man” already has six Super Bowl rings and he is obviously hungry for a seventh, so the only remaining question to answer now is exactly where is this man going to eat?

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-290)

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be the perfect team for Brady since they have a solid wide receiver corps in Chris Godwin and Mike Evans, plus they have two of what Brady loves to utilize, which are soft-handed tight ends, and OJ Howard and Cameron Brate are just that.

The Bucs are well over Jameis Winston and his 30 interceptions and last season seemed just a quarterback away from having some serious success, and Brady could be the veteran presence under center who could win games instead of throw passes to the other team.

Brady on the Tampa Bay roster would certainly take the pressure off of the Buccaneers’ young defense who played well at the end of the season but were ranked 15^th overall, with only three teams allowing their opponents to score more points per game (28.1), ranked 29^th in that category.

Los Angeles Chargers  (+170)

With Philip Rivers out of Los Angeles, the Chargers make perfect sense for Tom Brady for several legitimate reasons.

There are plenty of the veteran playmakers Brady craves on the roster – tight end Hunter Henry, running back Austin Ekeler and star wide receiver Keenan Allen.

Plus Brady in Los Angeles makes sense since his name and face have become a marketable brand and it’s the perfect city to take advantage of that, and with him and his wife’s healthy lifestyle, that city of fitness also seems to be a good fit.

And finally, post-NFL, Brady being in LA makes sense since his 199 Productions company is Hollywood based, and playing football nearby allows him to help his other business thrive while still having a team around him well capable of postseason play.

Miami Dolphins (+750)

Set everything football aside, and the warm clime of Miami Beach seems like the perfect place for Brady and his supermodel wife to hold court, especially given his aging throwing arm could benefit from not having to battle the cold so often (though Brady would deny that’s a problem, see above).

In terms of the actual Dolphins team, though, they are expected to draft a young quarterback with their fifth pick, most likely Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa if he’s still available, plus they still have journeyman Ryan Fitzpatrick there to act as a veteran mentor.

For the Dolphins to spend the amount of money it would take to make Brady happy seems unlikely, but having him on the roster does do one interesting thing for Miami – it gives them the ability to beat the Patriots twice a season, which could be worth the cost of admission alone.

Tennessee Titans  (N/A)

Plenty of experts predicted that Brady would be the perfect match for the Tennessee Titans since their head coach, Mike Vrabel, and Brady used to play together.

Plus, the Titans have plenty of terrific veteran offensive talent on the roster that Brady would do well with, including running back Derick Henry and wide receivers Corey Davis and AJ Brown and Adam Humphries.

But the Titans recently reached a four-year contract extension with Ryan Tannehill, so it looks like they are happy with the man who took their team to the postseason and the AFC Championship game after winning three playoff road games in a row.

Las Vegas Raiders (N/A)

It could have been fun to watch Brady in Vegas, but it looks like that is no longer an option.

Head coach Jon Gruden and company just signed free agent quarterback Marcus Mariota to give the team a veteran backup behind starter Derek Carr, whom they still apparently believe in.

Too bad – might have been fun (or at least interesting) to watch Brady and Gruden butt heads and create the kind of football drama that makes headlines but rarely wins championships in the NFL.

Brady Retires  (+3600)

Watch tape of Brady playing last season and it’s obvious the 43-year-old still has a lot of football left in him, so long as he’s not forced to do ‘young man’ things like scramble out of the pocket and evading tackles.

It would be shocking if Brady called it quits – he still seems to have a fire lit inside him that makes him willing to push through the grind of at least another NFL season.