Tom Brady & Sean Payton Considering Retirement?
For many, we never thought we would see the day where Tom Brady would call it a career.
The 44-year-old quarterback is still playing at a very high level which is unheard of for someone his age. Last year, he became the oldest starting quarterback to ever win a Super Bowl at 43 years old and after years of an anticipated drop off, it just simply hasn't happened. This past Sunday he nearly led the Buccaneers to an incredible come from behind victory in the final two minutes before Matthew Stafford made a big throw to set the Rams up for a game-winning field goal.
Heading into Sunday's game there was already some speculation that this could Brady's last go around but at that point in time it was all rumors. Monday, Brady went on his 'Let's Go' podcast and discussed the possibility of retirement.
"I said this a few years ago, it's what relationships are all about. It's not always what I want. It's what we want as a family. And I'm gonna spend a lot of time with them and figure out in the future what's next. It pains her to see me get hit out there. And she deserves what she needs from me as a husband and my kinds deserve what they need from me as a dad."
Should Brady retire, Tampa Bay would only have Kyle Trask, their 2021 2nd round pick, under contract for next season at quarterback. There is a possibility that they hand him the starting job but it would probably make more sense for them to be active in the trade market and in free agency for one of the handful of veteran quarterbacks that are leaning toward a change of scenery.
Another retirement that could really reshape the NFC South is New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton. Over the last few days reports have surfaced from Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network and a few others that Payton has not committed to the organization to returning in 2022.
Jay Glazer of FOX did a radio interview with 105.3 The Fan in Dallas talking about what he knows of the situation.
"Sean (Payton) changes his mind every two seconds. We talk about it a lot. It's why I haven't reported anything because he changes his mind like every two minutes," Glazer said. “But that’s also why I said two weeks ago on FOX NFL Sunday during the coaching carousel was that there could be a coach or two step away just because of these last two years of COVID, it’s taken its toll on people.”
When Saints owner Gayle Benson was asked if Payton has indicated which way he is leaning she responded, "We don't know. Who knows. We'll know soon enough I guess. I don't think any of us know but he'll let us know soon enough."
Replacing Sean Payton will not be easy but there are several quality candidates out there, including Saints defensive coordinator Dennis Allen who could be a name to watch. There are some that feel the Saints could be in play for a quarterback this offseason but they did go 5-2 with a healthy Jameis Winston.
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