Where will you go Tom Brady? Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you. Inserting Tom Brady into the famous Simon and Garfunkel song Mrs. Robinson seems to be the right thing to do now that the off-season has begun. Prepare yourself for the onslaught, as the Brady question will dominate the airwaves for the next 60 days. And it’s a fair question because after this horrible season, the worst in his career, Brady isn’t going to stop playing. He will say all the right things about taking time away, analyzing his options before making any decisions. Yet that fire that burns inside, which has been so strong for the last 20-plus years, isn’t easy to extinguish.
Watching Brady play last night wasn’t easy. His skills are still good. His arm is alive, stronger than ever, and when the offense is choreographed, he looks like a 30-year-old. In 2022, the offense was never in sync—no run game, no rhythm with his receivers. There was no choreographer with the Bucs' offense as offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, playing the role of the maestro, seemed overwhelmed. Each time during the 2022 season when an incompletion occurred, Brady looked perplexed throwing his arms into the air longing for the days of Josh McDaniels or Billy O’Brien. No one on the Bucs' offense seemed on the same page, and as a result, the details went unattended. When a team must throw the ball to gain four yards because they don’t have a running game, it places a huge burden on the quarterback—and no matter how talented the player is, the game can overwhelm him. With no running game, and no balance in the offense, each play relied on Brady to be perfect, and with a leaky offensive line, perfection was hard to attain.
The 2022 season was hard for him, and many will claim his skills are gone. After all, he is 45 years old and playing long past many (including me) thought any player could play. Although, I am not sure he is done. This season further proves the theory, that no matter how talented or smart the quarterback is, he needs the right supporting cast and a team buy-in. Which wasn’t the case in Tampa. Brady won’t be back to Tampa next season; that’s a given. I am not suggesting Brady will only walk away from the game if he has his Billy Chapel moment. (The Billy Chapel reference is from the movie, , when Chapel throws a perfect game in his last start and retires.) Rather, he can’t walk away with this awful taste from last night and the season. The last memory we all want of Brady isn’t what we witnessed last night.
Brady will just be one of the quarterback questions that will dominate the off-season. Lamar Jackson of the Ravens will get his fair share of airtime, as his future in Baltimore seems tenuous. The Ravens need to either sign Lamar for the long term or trade him because staying on the one-year Franchise tag deal will create another repeat of what occurred this season. If Jackson gets injured late next season, will he play with an unsure and unguaranteed future? Highly doubtful. The Franchise tag will only protect the Ravens' rights in terms of trade value for Jackson. It won’t solve the playing issue. Jackson just turned 26 years old, on the seventh of this month, just a few months older than Stetson Bennett of Georgia, who enters the draft this year. Jackson has at least 10 good seasons left, assuming he can stay healthy, which translates into two more contracts. The Ravens are not going to budge on the fully gua ranteed deal, nor will Jackson, so even though his rights are protected by the tag, his availability, once he gets nicked during the season, will always be in doubt.