Report: Tom Brady will have hard time leaving culture he created in New England

Tom Brady is far from a sure thing to return to the New England Patriots, but at least one connected reporter seems to think all the talk about Brady being excited for a fresh start has been overblown.

ESPN’s Mike Reiss, who has been covering the Patriots for years and is as plugged in as anyone with all the happenings in New England, thinks Brady will remain with the team as long as the Pats show him some love at the negotiating table. Reiss wrote on Sunday that the culture Brady has helped create in New England is important to him, and it’s not something he is itching to leave behind.

“I also think something that tugs at Brady’s heart is the culture he’s helped create in New England over 20 years, and it won’t be easy for him to leave if the Patriots come to the negotiating table with emotion and the intention of keeping him,” Reiss said. “That last part, in my opinion, is the key, and it’s why the negotiating football is currently in the Patriots’ hands.”

Another ESPN reporter, Jeff Darlington, said earlier in the week that it is “more likely than not” that Brady will leave the Patriots. That seems like a bit of an exaggeration at this point, and Las Vegas oddsmakers still consider New England the favorite by quite a wide margin.

The timing of the negotiations between Brady and the Patriots could make things complicated, as the team reportedly wants an answer from him before free agency begins. New England supposedly only considers one team a real threat to sign Brady away from them, so perhaps they are not all that concerned about the process dragging on too long.