The feeling surrounding Tom Brady’s impending free agency has largely been that the New England Patriots are playing hardball with their most important player in franchise history, but that speculation may be a bit overblown.
With reports having surfaced last week that Brady is telling those close to him he is unlikely to return to the Patriots next season, many assume the quarterback is frustrated that the team has not yet sat down at the negotiating table with his representatives. While there may be some truth to that, Tom E. Curran of NBC Sports Boston expressed confidence on Monday that Brady and the Patriots are “not in a Cold War.”
The Patriots still want Brady back in 2020. And since Bill Belichick is ultimately in charge of personnel decisions, that means he is not ready to part ways with the four-time Super Bowl MVP just yet, even if there is a belief that Belichick wants to prove he can win with another quarterback.
According to Curran, text messages have been exchanged between Brady and the Patriots, so the idea of the two sides ignoring each other just because they haven’t discussed a new contract yet is not accurate. Not only that, but the Patriots have already been active in exploring ways to overhaul their offense, which is almost certainly Brady’s top priority heading into his age-43 season. Brady is reportedly still planning to “listen closely” to what the Patriots have to say.
Fans have been looking for any sign that Brady is leaving New England, and it has even gotten to the point where people are trying to lipread. It looked like we may have gotten a clue about Brady’s future when he attended a college basketball game with Julian Edelman over the weekend, but an audio clip put that to rest.
We still find it hard to believe that Brady will want to start fresh in a new system with a new coaching staff. As long as the Patriots don’t completely low-ball him with an offer, they still have a better chance than any team to sign him to a new deal.
