Tom Brady had nothing less than an MVP caliber year during the 2021-2022 season. He led the league in passing with 5,316 yds and 43 touchdowns per ESPN. After leading the Bucs to a NFC South division title and finishing the regular season, the Bucs were 13-4 when heading into the postseason. However, they lost in a close, near comeback game to the Super Bowl champion Rams 30-27. Many felt this was the end for Brady even though he was showing no signs of slowing down. But after 22 seasons, 10 super bowl appearances, 7 superbowl wins, 3 MVPs, and numerous NFL records, Tom Brady, the G.O.A.T retired. It was the end of an era. The most dominant man in football history, and even possibly sports history, decided to call it quits on February 1, 2022. However, his retirement did not last long. 

On March 12, 2022, the internet was taken by storm when Tom Brady announced that he would no longer retire after this last season. In an Instagram post that received over 2.6 million likes, Brady shared that he would be returning for a 23’rd football season, his third with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Many football fans were shocked to hear about Brady’s return to the NFL and that he would be returning to Tampa to continue his career considering his age and consistency that he wanted to focus on other parts of his life more and not football. “I was really surprised to see him return because he had been posting about how he wanted to spend more time with his family on his social media.” Says Griffin Roeger, an avid Brady fan.

In his announcement, on both Instagram and Twitter, Brady explains how his retirement has driven him stir-crazy enough to return to the game. “These past two months I’ve realized my place is still on the field and not in the stands. That time will come. But it’s not now. I love my teammates, and I love my supportive family. They make it all possible. I’m coming back for my 23rd season in Tampa. Unfinished business LFG.”

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports that Brady was given a $10.4 million contract for the 2022 season which will put him among the NFL’s top-paid quarterbacks. In fact, the Bucs head coach left this money allotted on the side for Brady in hopes he would return, and this possibility was also the reason that the Bucs never offered the Houston Texans a trade for QB Deshaun Watson, who was a top contender for the opening. According to NFL.com, Brady’s return also makes the chances very high for other free agent players that used to play for the Buccaneers to come back, like Rob Gronkowski and Leonard Fournette.

The Buccaneers are thrilled to have Brady back, and it is news that they knew had a strong possibility of happening. Tampa Bay general manager Jason Licht released a statement saying that “Bruce and I have had plenty of conversations with Tom recently that led us to believe there was a realistic chance he would want to come back.” Similarly, Coach Burce Arians responded to Brady’s post on Twitter with a simple,”Total Excitement.” While it may have been a shock to NFL followers, those on the inside of the organization have had a suspicious feeling that Brady wasn’t ready to be done for a while now.

Although it was quite the shock, many of Brady’s fans could not be happier to hear of his return to the field for the upcoming season. Avid Brady fan Cooper Kelley is joyous about his return but is curious to see how successful the 2022 season will be for the 44-year-old quarterback. “I’m excited to see if Tom still has it considering he is not getting any younger. I think he can still be successful; he has been for the past 20 years so I don’t see why anything would change.”

Brady concluded the 2022 campaign as the NFL’s all-time leader in passing yards (84,520) and touchdowns (624). This, along with his seven previous Super Bowl wins, shows that Brady will continue his legacy in the game of football. Upon his retirement in February 2021, Brady was still considered amongst the best quarterbacks in the league(2021-2022 MVP candidate). With Brady’s return the Bucs have jumped into third in superbowl odds per SI sportsbooks. Bucs fans and the rest of the GOAT’s followers are excited to see what he has in store for this next season, as he seems destined and hungry for an eighth superbowl.