Tom Brady was seemingly still numb from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30-27 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday (Jan. 23) night, ending the 44-year-old quarterback’s season and preventing Brady from winning back-to-back Super Bowls. Amid reports that he’s undecided about his future, Brady said during the post-game press conference that he was still reeling from the elimination. “Truthfully guys, I’m thinking about this game,” Tom said, per ESPN. “I’m not thinking about anything past five minutes from now.”
Ahead of the Buccs-Rams showdown, ESPN reported that Tom is uncertain that he will return to Tampa Bay and that he would take time after the season ends to assess how he feels mentally and physically. “I haven’t put a lot of thought into [retirement],” Tom said at the post-game presser, “so you know, we will just take it day by day and kind of see where we are at.” When asked if Tom thought about how this could be his last time on the field, the seven-time Super Bowl champions said that was the farthest thing from his mind. “I was thinking about winning,” he said. “That’s kind of my mentality — always to go out there and try to win. Give my teammates the best chance to win.”
Brady did his best. The Buccaneers ended the first of the game in a 27-3 deficit, but Tom — like how he rallied the New England Patriots to come back from a 21-3 deficit in Super Bowl LI and beat the Atlanta Falcons, 34-28 — somehow got the score tied, 27 to 27, with 42 seconds left in the game. However, Rams QB Matthew Stafford got his team within field goal range. Matt Gay nailed the game-winning kick, and Brady watched as his Super Bowl dreams vanished. Now, he’s left with a major decision to make
Tom has one year left on his contract with the Buccaneers, and Tampa Bay wants him back. “The team really believes he will be back,” a source told HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY, but the insider notes that this is the first time that Tom has ever really considered retirement due to both his age and his family’s needs. “Conversations with Gisele [Bundchen] in the offseason is going to be a major component on if he continues to play in the NFL or not.”