I just want to know the missing part of the equation here, if Schefter is aware of something behind public facts. He is not one to speculate and stake his reputation on guesses, and despite him claiming this is just speculation, he knows that’s not how this will be interpreted. He’s saying he thinks Brady doesn’t want to play for the Patriots, or the Patriots don’t want Brady.
1. It makes no sense for Brady to go to another team from a competitive standpoint. No team is even close to the Patriots in terms of supporting cast and coaching.
2. Let’s remember that most athletes, and the ones Brady likely named, like Farve, Manning and Montana, were forced out because of a younger emerging superstar. The Patriots do not have that, unless you think Stidham is the chosen one. I don’t buy it. In addition, the Patriots have a lot of legacy stake in Brady retiring with the team.
3. So given that a breakup is irrational for both sides, his leads me to believe that if there is information that Schefter has, it has something to do with a personality/ ego/ control situation like the reports in 2017. I do not think Brady or Belichick care about “proving” they can win without the other...that’s totally unsupported. Here are the potential divides that I could see:
Speculation A. Brady feels disrespected that the Patriots didn’t give him the long term extension he wanted. It comes back to the Guerrero rift again, where Brady believes wholeheartedly he can play until 45, and the team doubting him as a slap in the face to his whole belief system and TB12 Inc. He wants security and feels he’s earned it, and he basically said this politely after the contract was signed. Remember, this is a guy who feeds off of doubt, and that point should not be underestimated..this is the first time his own team has been the doubters, in his mind.
Speculation B. Brady wants to have a lot more leeway with his football/personal time at his age. Some older vets QBs have worked out deals where they had a lot of personal days. Belichick may be unwilling to do that, whereas other coaches may be (and beyond that, the grind of playing for NE is different from the laid back atmosphere of some other organizations.). I believe they could have kept Gronkowski if they had allowed for preferential treatment.
Speculation C. Both sides are just posturing as much as possible as a normal contract standoff and plan to continue working together. Brady doesn’t want to get lowballed, and the team doesn’t want to concede that they will pay anything to keep him. You have the ultimate game of chicken here, though sometimes these things blow up in the wrong direction once the reality of free agency begins.
Point D (not speculation). I honestly don’t think Brady has an answer for whether or not he wants to retire. This just adds more fuel to the fire for the Patriots position of not being sure if they want to commit. However, I think the Patriots are protected financially if Brady does retire early, and it’s not like they have some elite QB they’re passing on by giving him a multi-year extension.
