When National Football League superstar, Tom Brady, finally announced to the world that he was retiring from the game that made him famous, there was an inevitable collective holding of breath. The NFL, and those who play within the league as well as the legions of fans that can’t get enough of it, experienced something akin to a deep sense of loss. Brady was the man when it comes to the past decade’s worth of professional football, and his retirement is not unlike when Jordan retired from professional basketball.
The 44-year-old has long been such a key element of the game and basically the face of professional football in general that though we all expected him to, at some point, quit the game, there were many who were caught a little off guard by the timing of his decision. This past season hasn’t been his best, it’s true, but despite his age, he seemed to have at least a couple more years more left on the field.
The loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers is undoubtedly one that is still being keenly felt, and a quick glance at their futures odds, for more details check Sidelines a sports odds comparison site will show you just how hard the Raymond James Stadium team has been hit, but that didn’t change how much of a surprise Brady’s retirement announcement was.
Brady may have only rocked up to Tampa for two seasons, but you can’t underplay his impact on the team. He took the Buccaneers to a Super Bowl in his first season and then spent last season posting excellent numbers for both himself and the team (leading the way in terms of passing yards and touchdowns).
So what now for Brady? If you had the seven-time Super Bowl champion down as a film star and producer in your sweepstake, and why would you, you are a winner.
Sports stars have made the jump to movies before, but the successful ones have been almost entirely from the world of wrestling, which is already very performative. His new role as producer is easy enough, but can he act? Fortunately, his pick for his first film is a smart one because for his first role as an actor, he should be OK playing a fictionalized version of himself in an upcoming road trip movie titled ‘80 for Brady’. The film follows the progress of four friends who take a road trip to see their beloved New England Patriots take on the Atlanta Falcons at the 2017 Super Bowl.
The movie is produced by Tom Brady’s 199 Productions and perhaps shows where the former NFL star may be looking to spend his coming years. 44 may be relatively old for football, but it’s hardly retirement age for most of us, so it makes sense that he would turn towards a new career which he can cash in on his significant fame. To start things off, he is easing in slowly by playing himself and letting some real actors do the, well, acting. A host of stars are lined up for the film, with the likes of Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, Lily Tomlin, and Sally Field slated for the project.
Of course, before his new role, his past few years in his old job were particularly notabke. The 2017 Super Bowl was the setting for a stunning comeback by the Patriots, who were 21-3 down at the half-time break before Brady led the Pats to a 34-28 overtime win.
Brady has ‘acted’ before, of course, with appearances in Ted 2 and Entourage, but he helpfully played himself on both of those occasions too. As a general rule, sportsmen and women are lousy actors, so if they happen to be playing themselves, there is a lot less room for error. This may not mean that he won’t go for meatier roles in the future, but moving in slowly and getting used to the particular world of film making is a smart move; hedging his bets to build up a reputation.
As for Tom Brady’s NFL career, well, it turns out that it may not actually be over, quite yet, as a number of stories have started to circulate about a possible immediate return to the game, albeit not with the Buccaneers. It remains to be seen whether the rumours are true or not but fans should not give up hope.
There are two teams who are apparently possible options if Brady wants to get back into the game, even if just temporarily. One comes in the form of the San Francisco 49ers; the team he grew up supporting as a kid is a franchise who could certainly do with a quarterback of his abilities, and their management would probably take him on eagerly.
Another, perhaps less likely, option comes via the Miami Dolphins, the thinking here being that such a move would be closer to his South Florida mansion. It will be interesting to see if Brady does get back in the game, and of course, he is still, technically, under contract with Tampa Bay, but anything is possible.
Would that be the right move for him, though? Perhaps it would be better for Brady to go out on the top – or very near the top – of his game rather than risk becoming a has been whose legacy is tainted by staying in the spotlight for longer than he should have. And perhaps if he does return it might end up saying something along the lines of him not being able to do anything else. He certainly has enough money not to do anything else, but Brady has shown himself to be a truly driven individual. Whether that means returning for another season or two with another team, trying his hand at Hollywood full-time or becoming a sports spoke person or philanthropist, it’s clear that Tom Brady won’t stay away for too long. It’s doubtful that he has it in him to quit.
