Joe Montana's Advice to Tom Brady on Free Agency: Don't Leave Patriots
Tom Brady has the chance to become a free agent for the first time in his 20-year career, but Joe Montana has some words of advice for the Patriots quarterback before he makes any decisions.
In an interview with NFL.com's Michael Silver, Montana shared from his own experience how change isn't always easy.
"Don't–if you don't have to. It's a process to go through, and it takes time to get used to the team. I was fortunate because [former 49ers quarterbacks coach] Paul Hackett was there running the offense, and so I was pretty familiar with probably three-quarters of the offense going in," Montana said. "And, if they let [Brady] have his own offense [with a new team], yeah, that makes it a little bit easier. But still, the transition of moving ...
"I just can't see how they would let him leave there, myself."
Montana is no stranger to late-career changes. After playing for the 49ers for 13 seasons and winning four Super Bowls, San Francisco traded him to the Chiefs in 1993. Despite the transition to a new team, Montana benefited from the Chiefs' hiring Hackett as offensive coordinator.
Montana threw for 2,144 yards, 13 touchdowns and seven interceptions while leading the team to win the AFC West title for the first time in 22 years. Kansas City later fell to the Bills in the AFC championship game. The following season the Chiefs returned to the playoffs as a wild card but were defeated by the Dolphins.
Despite his success in Kansas City, Montana asks why Brady should make the change if he doesn't have to. Brady will become an unrestricted free agent in March and is reportedly prepared to meet with other teams this offseason.
Brady, who has won six Super Bowls with the Patriots, has repeatedly said that he wants to play to at least age 45. He is coming off a season in which he threw for 4,057 yards, 24 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
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