Tom Brady finally says goodbye to football — “for good.” After 23 years in the NFL and multiple trips to the Super Bowl, the 45 year-old legendary quarterback announced his retirement, Wednesday morning February 1, 2023.
Brady made the announcement via Twitter saying “I’ll get to the point right away.”
“I’m retiring for good. I know the process was a pretty big deal last time, so when I woke up this morning, I figured I’d just press record and let you guys know first.
“It won’t be long-winded. You only get one super-emotional retirement essay, and I used mine up last year.”
The seven-time Super Bowl champion also thanked his family, friends, teammates, and even competitors.
“Thank you guys for allowing me to live my absolute dream,” he said. “I wouldn’t change a thing.”
What Tom Brady has accomplished as a quarterback in the NFL would probably, if not already, makes him the GOAT — at least in his position. He has led the New England Patriots to six Lombardi Trophies and the Tampa Buccaneers to one.
In Brady’s long career, he has amassed three league MVP awards and broken almost every passing record including regular season passing yards with 89,214 and passing touchdowns with 649. He also collected the most wins of any player in NFL history with 251.
“The greatest ever,” the NFL tweeted on Wednesday.
“All the Super Bowl titles and statistical records speak for themselves, but the impact he had on so many people through the years is what I appreciate the most,” Buccaneers General Manager Jason Licht said in a statement.
“His imprint on this organization helped take us to the mountaintop. We will certainly miss him as our quarterback, but I will also miss him as a leader and friend.
“Our entire organization is indebted to him for what he provided us over the past three years. We won’t ever forget the wins or the accolades and his influence will be felt for years to come.”
Initially retiring last February, Brady decided to come back, but his last year in the NFL wasn’t all that easy. The Bucs finished with an 8-9 record and were eliminated by the Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional round.
Life off the field was also difficult for Brady. He went through a divorce with his wife during the 2022 season, Gisele Bündchen. Sources say the root cause is Brady’s unwillingness to retire, but who really knows.
Despite Brady’s difficult final year in the NFL, he will sail into the sunset taking with him more Super Bowl wins than any other player and NFL records that put him as the probably the greatest NFL player of all time.
Thank you Tom Brady!
You can watching his retirement announcement video below:
Truly grateful on this day. Thank you 🙏🏻❤️ pic.twitter.com/j2s2sezvSS
— Tom Brady (@TomBrady) February 1, 2023
