If the Bucs Sign Tom Brady, Who Wears No. 12?
Rumors have been flying around about Tom Brady playing elsewhere for the first time in his career next season, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been mentioned as a potential destination for the future first-ballot Hall of Famer.
There are many different angles that conversation has taken in recent weeks, but there's one important aspect that hasn't been brought up much.
Would Brady get to wear the only jersey number he's ever known as an NFL player?
That would be No. 12, which is currently worn by Bucs wide receiver Chris Godwin. The former third-round pick out of Penn State broke out in 2019, finishing third in the NFL in receiving yards and earning his first Pro Bowl nod, despite missing the last 2.5 games of the season with a hamstring injury.
Entering the final year of his rookie contract, Godwin is likely to get a lucrative long-term extension from the Bucs sometime this season. He's clearly a cornerstone of Tampa Bay's offense, and he's worn No. 12 ever since entering the league, just as he did at Penn State.
Would Brady be able to pay him off for the number, or would his stature as arguably the best quarterback in NFL history give him leverage over a fourth-year wide receiver, even if that receiver has become one of the league's best?
If Brady was forced to make a change, or simply wanted to, he could go back to the jersey number he wore at Michigan. It would be much easier to wrestle No. 10 away from second-year wide receiver Scotty Miller than making a play for Godwin's No. 12.
