Tom Brady Reveals He Almost Signed With Different NFC Team Before Choosing Buccaneers
September 29, 2024
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Tom Brady is, without a doubt, the greatest quarterback in NFL history.
After experiencing unbelievable success with the New England Patriots, Brady continued to show his skill by leading the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a Super Bowl victory.
However, Brady recently revealed that this almost wasn’t the case.
TAMPA, FLORIDA – JANUARY 16: Tom Brady #12 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers screams in celebration against the Dallas Cowboys prior to the NFC Wild Card Playoff game at Raymond James Stadium on January 16,… TAMPA, FLORIDA – JANUARY 16: Tom Brady #12 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers screams in celebration against the Dallas Cowboys prior to the NFC Wild Card Playoff game at Raymond James Stadium on January 16, 2023 in Tampa, Florida.
Perry Knotts/Getty Images
While he was commentating the Philadelphia Eagles-Buccaneers game for FOX, Brady casually shared why he chose to join Tampa Bay.
“There was a lot of reasons to choose Tampa and I made abut 18 criteria why,” Brady said while holding multiple lists. “There was things from the salary, obviously, to the weather, the facilities, to how great the players were.”
However, the biggest revelation was that Brady was “seriously considering” joining a different NFC team.
“Chicago was a team, and I never told that story before, they were very stealth in their recruitment,” Brady explained. “I was seriously considering them. But, in the end, it came down to Tampa.”
It turns out, Brady made the right decision by not joining the Chicago Bears. Not only did he win his seventh Super Bowl and his fifth Super Bowl MVP, but he was able to prove that he didn’t need the Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick to succeed.
Brady was selected by the Patriots with the 199th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He was the seventh quarterback chosen.
Despite being the fourth-string quarterback his rookie year, Brady became the starter for the Patriots in 2001 and led them to a Super Bowl victory over the then-St. Louis Rams. He was also named to the Pro Bowl.
In the end, Brady would go on to win seven Super Bowls, five Super Bowl MVP awards, three NFL MVP awards, two NFL Offensive Player of the Year awards, NFL Comeback Player of the Year, and was named to 15 Pro Bowls.
Across his 23-year career, Brady recorded 7,753 completions for 89,214 yards and 649 touchdowns.
In this time, Brady has broken dozens of NFL records, including most career quarterback wins (251), most career passing completions (7,753), most career passing touchdowns (649), and most career passing yards (89,214). He is also the only player to win the Super Bowl for both the AFC and NFC.
Brady was named to the NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time team and the New England Patriots All-Dynasty Team. He was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame and had his number retired by the team.
For more NFL news, head on over to Newsweek Sports.
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