Report: Patriots have not ruled out Tom Brady retiring after 2019

No matter how many times he says it, there are people who just cannot be convinced that Tom Brady is going to play until he is 45. Some of those people apparently work for the New England Patriots organization.

According to Greg A. Bedard of Boston Sports Journal, there are people with the Patriots who have not ruled out the possibility that Brady will retire following the 2019 season. Though, Bedard does note that the belief may hinge on the Patriots winning another Super Bowl, as that would give Brady seven total and four in his final six seasons. It would also break the tie between the Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers for most Super Bowl wins by a franchise.

Of course, that goes against everything Brady has been saying in recent years. He seems fully committed to playing until he is 45, and it is unlikely any amount of success will change that. The most important factor may be that the longer he plays, the stronger his TB12 brand becomes. Brady has created a successful off-field business that is designed to help train athletes to play at their peak performance longer, and him doing just that for as long as possible can only boost the credibility of the so-called TB12 Method.

Bedard’s tidbit about Brady came as part of a larger discussion about the salary cap space the Patriots are scheduled to have in 2020, which is a whopping $75 million. Brady’s current contract is set to expire after 2019, and there’s a chance the team could explore the idea of using the franchise tag on him — especially if they think he could retire before the 2020 season. However, Patriots owner Robert Kraft will almost certainly sign Brady to an extension if that’s what he wants.

Despite his timely joke when he joined Twitter this week, Brady insists he is not going anywhere for at least another three years. Doubting that would just be silly, even for the Patriots.