The NFL offseason is always filled with rumors. This player may leave, this player might get traded, what team is going to trade in the draft and so on. But no rumor has captivated the league than the rumors that Tom Brady might leave the New England Patriots and play for another team. When I first hear this, I laughed. LOL. Why would Tom Brady leave the Patriots, where he won 6 Super Bowl titles, wins the AFC East every single year, nearly goes to the AFC championship every year, has become the greatest quarterback of all time. Why on earth would he ever want to leave?
Well the chances of Tom Brady leaving the Patriots are looking more possible. ESPN Patriots reporter was on Get Up this morning and said this about Tom Brady.
“I’m now at the point where I would be stunned if Tom Brady went back to New England.”
—@jeffdarlington on @GetUpESPN pic.twitter.com/CnyoANl77v
— ESPN (@espn) February 27, 2020
Even hearing this still makes my head spin. Tom Brady could actually leave the franchise that made him into a legend. Obviously there is still a major IF he leaves. But if does, Tom Brady would change the entire dynamic for the NFL.
To start, if Brady leaves, who takes over at quarterback for the Patriots? The only two quarterbacks they have under roster are Jarrett Stidham and Cody Kessler. Not to insult Jarrett Stidham, but he doesn’t exactly strike fear into the hearts of his opponents. So if Brady leaves, the Patriots will be left scrambling for a quarterback. Will they look to free agency and try to sign someone like Ryan Tannehill, do they move up in the 1st round to take the QB of the future, do they pull off a trade this offseason? Either way the Patriots would have to do something because they have no quarterback on the roster that can compete.
This also impacts the AFC East and the AFC as a whole. If Brady leaves the Patriots, are they still even the favorites to win the AFC East? The Buffalo Bills are a rising team with a Top 10 defense and a young mobile quarterback in Josh Allen who finished 10-6 and made the postseason. The New York Jets, despite having the season from hell, managed to finish 7-9 and have a young talented quarterback in Sam Darnold who some experts say could be one of the top 3 quarterbacks in the league. And the Dolphins, well they are rebuilding. But all of a sudden the AFC East now becomes wide open and is no longer a lock for the Patriots to win.
That leads to my final but most important point. If Brady leaves the Patriots, the New England dynasty officially comes to an end. Just take a look at just the AFC alone. The Kansas City Chiefs are defending Super Bowl champions who look like they could win more titles. MVP Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens and their offense are going to compete in the AFC. Deshaun Watson and the Houston Texans are just a few pieces away from taking the next step as title contenders. The Patriots can still be a good team, hell even a great team. But without Tom Brady, they are no longer a dynasty. If he leaves, the Patriots will have to plan for what the future will look like. They will have to search for the guy to take over for Brady and there are no guarantees he will succeed even with Bill Belichick. There is just so much in the air for the Patriots this offseason. Brady could just be trolling us all and return to New England and life will go in the NFL. But if leaves, get ready for one of the craziest offseasons we have ever seen.
