Halloran contemplates Brady retiring...

[BradyManny]

I agree completely. Didn't Reiss have a quote earlier this year where Brady was saying he wanted to play until he was 37 or 38?

The notion that Tom is going to retire b/c he has things in his life other than football is absurd. Every player on that team has as much a life as Tom. Every player on that team has family, wives, girlfriends, children, brothers, sisters. Every player on the team has things they do off the field, things they enjoy, places to go, people to see, etc. The only difference is, Tom is the only one dating a celebrity and the only one living his life out in public.

Tom Brady's occupation is an NFL football player. He has a life. Those things can co-exist. Tom Brady is smart enough to know that his time as a football player is finite, and that he loves the game. Trust me, Brady will play until he can't play anymore, and if anything, the experience of having a year in his prime stolen from him will only inspire him to play longer.

 

[Iron Helmet]

Hey, its not outside the realm of possibility, so give the guy a break. For alittle more insight into the mind of Tom Brady, see recent Esquire article (Aug 08):

...why should people care about football at all? "They shouldn't," sayeth the Brady. "Look at the attention I get: It's because I throw a football. But that's what society values. That's not what God values. God could give a ****, as far as I'm concerned. He didn't invent the game. We did. I have some eye-hand coordination, and I can throw the ball. I don't think that matters to God."

But, he's reminded, the guys you play with routinely state that God does care. "Maybe," Tom Brady says, "but that's not the way I feel. It's a game, man. I have a hell of a lot of fun playing it, don't get me wrong. And it's very competitive and very stimulating. And that's why I do it. But we invented this game."

Doesn't sound to me he'll be pulling a Brett Farve any time in the future, and if rehab gets tough, and it will, I wouldn't put it past him to put serious thought into hanging up the cleats.

Do I think he will? Absolutely Not. But it is possible, and not as extremely remote as some of you are leading on.

 

[emoney_33]

Hey, its not outside the realm of possibility, so give the guy a break. For alittle more insight into the mind of Tom Brady, see recent Esquire article (Aug 08):

...why should people care about football at all? "They shouldn't," sayeth the Brady. "Look at the attention I get: It's because I throw a football. But that's what society values. That's not what God values. God could give a ****, as far as I'm concerned. He didn't invent the game. We did. I have some eye-hand coordination, and I can throw the ball. I don't think that matters to God."

But, he's reminded, the guys you play with routinely state that God does care. "Maybe," Tom Brady says, "but that's not the way I feel. It's a game, man. I have a hell of a lot of fun playing it, don't get me wrong. And it's very competitive and very stimulating. And that's why I do it. But we invented this game."

Doesn't sound to me he'll be pulling a Brett Farve any time in the future, and if rehab gets tough, and it will, I wouldn't put it past him to put serious thought into hanging up the cleats.

Do I think he will? Absolutely Not. But it is possible, and not as extremely remote as some of you are leading on.

The leap from that quote to your analysis is astounding. Simply amazing.

Quick let's go back to when Tom was a kid and find a quote of him saying he wants to be a firefighter and then extrapolate that to be possible that he quits football and becomes a firefighter...

 

[BradyManny]

Hey, its not outside the realm of possibility, so give the guy a break. For alittle more insight into the mind of Tom Brady, see recent Esquire article (Aug 08):

...why should people care about football at all? "They shouldn't," sayeth the Brady. "Look at the attention I get: It's because I throw a football. But that's what society values. That's not what God values. God could give a ****, as far as I'm concerned. He didn't invent the game. We did. I have some eye-hand coordination, and I can throw the ball. I don't think that matters to God."

But, he's reminded, the guys you play with routinely state that God does care. "Maybe," Tom Brady says, "but that's not the way I feel. It's a game, man. I have a hell of a lot of fun playing it, don't get me wrong. And it's very competitive and very stimulating. And that's why I do it. But we invented this game."

Doesn't sound to me he'll be pulling a Brett Farve any time in the future, and if rehab gets tough, and it will, I wouldn't put it past him to put serious thought into hanging up the cleats.

Do I think he will? Absolutely Not. But it is possible, and not as extremely remote as some of you are leading on.

Again - that has NOTHING to do with how long he'll play the game. He's talking about your job the way you or I would talk about our job as well. He's not overestimating the importance of football, he's being pretty frank. But that doesn't mean he's going to quit playing football. I don't think I'm going to change the world editing video, but just b/c I acknowledge that doesn't mean I'm going to up and quit today.

That quote just shows that Brady has some self awareness and he has a life. It's possible to have both of those things and continue on with his current employment.

I just cannot understand this crazy notion that you either live & breathe football 24x7, 365 and have absolutely nothing else going on in you're life otherwise you're on the verge of retirement.

 

[ctpatsfan77]

Well, he's also said post-injury that he doesn't like anyone doing "his job," so, I think at least at the moment, he still sees "Quarterback of the New England Patriots" as his job title, with Cassel holding down the fort (admirably, Brady hopes) until he can return.

 

[Iron Helmet]

The leap from that quote to your analysis is astounding. Simply amazing.

Quick let's go back to when Tom was a kid and find a quote of him saying he wants to be a firefighter and then extrapolate that to be possible that he quits football and becomes a firefighter...

Really? I don't think so. The leap of logic is quite simple: The quote tells me that Football is not the most important thing in his life, and that he doesn't have the Jerry Rice/Brett Farve mentality that basically equates life with the sport. This disconnect allows him to look at his situation a bit more objectively, and based on his injury/son/potential marriage/new kids/what he has done in the sport to date and what he has to gain continuing the game, Brady contemplating retirement is not out of the realm of possiblity.

 

[BradyManny]

Really? I don't think so. The leap of logic is quite simple: The quote tells me that Football is not the most important thing in his life, and that he doesn't have the Jerry Rice/Brett Farve mentality that basically equates life with the sport. This disconnect allows him to look at his situation a bit more objectively, and based on his injury/son/potential marriage/new kids/what he has done in the sport to date and what he has to gain continuing the game, Brady contemplating retirement is not out of the realm of possiblity.

I can guarantee you there isn't an athlete that would say sports is more important than their family, Rice, Favre, whoever. Brady's no different.

 

[Iron Helmet]

I can guarantee you there isn't an athlete that would say sports is more important than their family, Rice, Favre, whoever. Brady's no different.

Brady's responses seem to indicate a deeper sense of introspection than you get from your typical baller. Something like: "I love the game. I'm not done yet by a longshot...and I am looking forward to getting back after last year..."

I guarantee you ask Brady those same questions in 2002, and the answer is completely different than 2008. Bottom line, he has done enough already to get into the HOF and retire his family for life three times over. With a child, a woman in his life that probably wants a family and kids, and an injury to battle back from, and a pile of cash, why is it sacreligious to suggest be could hang it up?

 

[Pats726]

I agree Halloran is out of touch... but RETIRING like Jim Brown?? He'd be gone now...NOT happening..

 

[emoney_33]

I guarantee you ask Brady those same questions in 2002, and the answer is completely different than 2008. Bottom line, he has done enough already to get into the HOF and retire his family for life three times over. With a child, a woman in his life that probably wants a family and kids, and an injury to battle back from, and a pile of cash, why is it sacreligious to suggest be could hang it up?

Stop projecting your own values/opinions into the mind of Tom Brady. Seriously. A man would go crazy without a job and Tom loves his job. Seriously I don't' understand what the heck is in some of your minds and I can't believe this is even a topic.

 

[Leave No Doubt]

Hey, its not outside the realm of possibility, so give the guy a break. For alittle more insight into the mind of Tom Brady, see recent Esquire article (Aug 08):

...why should people care about football at all? "They shouldn't," sayeth the Brady. "Look at the attention I get: It's because I throw a football. But that's what society values. That's not what God values. God could give a ****, as far as I'm concerned. He didn't invent the game. We did. I have some eye-hand coordination, and I can throw the ball. I don't think that matters to God."

But, he's reminded, the guys you play with routinely state that God does care. "Maybe," Tom Brady says, "but that's not the way I feel. It's a game, man. I have a hell of a lot of fun playing it, don't get me wrong. And it's very competitive and very stimulating. And that's why I do it. But we invented this game."

Doesn't sound to me he'll be pulling a Brett Farve any time in the future, and if rehab gets tough, and it will, I wouldn't put it past him to put serious thought into hanging up the cleats.

Do I think he will? Absolutely Not. But it is possible, and not as extremely remote as some of you are leading on.

I remember those quotes and they're taken out of context. He's replying to questions regarding how he feels about people fawning all over him and this weird kind of hero-worship god-like status that seems to plague him at times.

JMO but he's merely trying to put things in perspective and to me that hardly indicates his readiness to retire; it indicates a VERY HEALTHY outlook. Compare his perspective to the likes of Mercury Morris who still touts the aqua colored champagne on ice. At least that's how I took the quotes-anyway I looked up the article in question and it's definitely worth a read:

Tom Brady Interview - Tom Brady on Football, the Super Bowl, the New England Patriots - Esquire

 

[MoLewisrocks]

I guarantee you ask Brady those same questions in 2002, and the answer is completely different than 2008. Bottom line, he has done enough already to get into the HOF and retire his family for life three times over. With a child, a woman in his life that probably wants a family and kids, and an injury to battle back from, and a pile of cash, why is it sacreligious to suggest be could hang it up?

Because unlike yourself and Halloran some of us also accept that football legacy is important to guys as competitive and driven as Belichick and Brady. And they know they have a finite period in which to cement it as potentially the greatest of all time.

 

[MoLewisrocks]

I remember those quotes and they're taken out of context. He's replying to questions regarding how he feels about people fawning all over him and this weird kind of hero-worship god-like status that seems to plague him at times.

JMO but he's merely trying to put things in perspective and to me that hardly indicates his readiness to retire; it indicates a VERY HEALTHY outlook. Compare his perspective to the likes of Mercury Morris who still touts the aqua colored champagne on ice. At least that's how I took the quotes-anyway I looked up the article in question and it's definitely worth a read:

Tom Brady Interview - Tom Brady on Football, the Super Bowl, the New England Patriots - Esquire

It's amazing how many people misinterpreted his words in the context of that article to mean he didn't care passionately about football when what he was saying is fans and media and perhaps players who are unable to transition past their time spent playing it are the ones who honestly shouldn't. He was in many ways talking more about the cult of celebrity.

 

[emoney_33]

It's amazing how many people misinterpreted his words in the context of that article to mean he didn't care passionately about football when what he was saying is fans and media and perhaps players who are unable to transition past their time spent playing it are the ones who honestly shouldn't. He was in many ways talking more about the cult of celebrity.

Isn't the first and won't be the last time a quote is taken wildly out of context and spun to fit an agenda.

 

[Leave No Doubt]

It's amazing how many people misinterpreted his words in the context of that article to mean he didn't care passionately about football when what he was saying is fans and media and perhaps players who are unable to transition past their time spent playing it are the ones who honestly shouldn't. He was in many ways talking more about the cult of celebrity.

Exactly Mo. Maybe one fine day all fans will wake up to the fact that the media's goal doesn't necessarily involve speaking to what's true. I remember when those quotes first got headlined (I forget which pundit it was who hopped on them) but given the way it got worded I'm sure a lot of people took it just as IH did,which of course was probably the original intent.

Anyway, despite the fact I had to weed through all kinds of man stuff to find that article it was well worth it. Really,really well done by Esquire,who I think nailed it's premise nicely.

 

[MassPats38]

Given the competitive fire Brady displays, I predict he will be around for quite a while. He is intelligent enough to call it a career when he loses a step or to step down when his supporting cast is putting him in a position to get seriously damaged and has little to no potential of contending for a championship.

He lived through college and his early career trying to prove his worth. Would it really make sense to get to the Promised Land as one of the best in the game, then walk away when you get there? Jim Brown was a terror and acknowledged great throughout his career, so for him it was just a case of walking away from the fanfare he had always known. My money is on Brady enjoying that status for as many years as he can, and not dumping it for other pursuits.

I suspect he also has ambitions after his career is over (with the contacts he has made and his underdog story, politics anyone?), but he will want to enjoy the career. He will come back from his injury to add to his career story then walk away when he no longer can do the job or the team situation indicates it is time to walk away (the team goes bad enough to require rebuilding). I would be more inclined to accept the 37 or 38 year old Brady leaving the game than him leaving much earlier because he is tired of the game or to dump the career for business opportunities.

 

[Free_Pacman]

You people are so naive. You can just tell Brady's heart is just not in the game anymore, and it irritates the hell out of me. He is too obsessed with his girlfriend and family to really care that much about football anymore. Do you honestly think five years ago he would have been doing what he was doing with that boot in New York? I know it sucks but he just doesn't care as much as he used to. Look at the fact he lost his parking spot for no longer being the hardest worker. I would not be surprised if he doesn't come back next year.

 

[drew4008]

I'd like to hear somebody ask him this sometime before training camp. I'd be interested in the way he answers it.

 

[Iron Helmet]

Because unlike yourself and Halloran some of us also accept that football legacy is important to guys as competitive and driven as Belichick and Brady. And they know they have a finite period in which to cement it as potentially the greatest of all time.

MY gut says he is slightly burnt out. I think last year took a huge toll on him (understandibly so).

 

[Leave No Doubt]

First of all I do believe he's signed through 2010. Either way do you seriously believe he wouldn't even try to come back. This crap is as bad as when analyzing his body language was buzz

The only way he'll retire is if he physically can't perform up to expectations and somehow becomes more of a liability to the team than an asset. He gave up his space because he did need the time, and now he's got more time than he originally bargained for. He's too committed to this team and there's NO WAY he'd let BB and his team down just for the sake of finding his Zen.

:ugh: