After 22 consecutive seasons in the NFL, earning 6 Super Bowl rings with the New England Patriots and another one with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Tom Brady, one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game, is retiring.
The decision comes just one week after the Bucs lost to the Los Angeles Rams in the playoffs, a game in which Brady was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for the first time in his career. The 44-year-old lock to be a first-ballot Hall Of Fame inductee cites family and health as the reason he’s hanging them up.
Brady’s seven Super Bowl victories are the most by a single player in history. Along with being named MVP five times, Brady also holds career records for passing yards (84,250) and touchdown passes (624). He also finished the 2021 NFL season leading the league in both categories.
League sources have told ESPN that Brady has acknowledged the family sacrifices that would be required to continue playing, and that it is time to move on to the next chapter in his life and career.
The sixth-round selection in the 2000 NFL Draft has gone from underdog to legend and will be missed in the sport.