Tom Brady has sparked rumors that he is leaving the New England Patriots after posting a black and white picture of himself walking out of their stadium.
There has been speculation in recent weeks that Brady could be leaving the Pats and potentially signing up with the Tennessee Titans.
According to WCVB Brady’s wife, Gisele Bundchen, was spotted visiting schools in the Nashville area on Thursday, however the school has denied this.
Tom Brady posted a cryptic tweet on Thursday of him walking out of the New England Patriots team’s stadium in a sign he could be leaving after winning six Super Bowls
Brady has been seen in New York this week along with his three children, while his wife Gisele Bundchen, had reportedly been seen in Nashville checking out schools for their children
Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady is pictured 19 years ago during a game in September 2001
Brady tosses the football during a game earlier this month against the Tennessee Titans
The tweet alone appeared to cause a flurry of speculation online with many followers asking ‘What does it mean?’
Debate eve ranged over which stadium Brady was standing in and whether or not he was walking into or out of the tunnel.
The picture is presumably of Brady standing in a tunnel at Gillette Stadium.
The ground is wet, making it hard for the viewer to discern whether or not he is walking onto the field as part of a triumphant return or leaving for the very last time.
The image looks even more dramatic when coupled with the reflection and black and white filter.
Nothing about the image clear – a deliberate move by Brady who must be relishing talk over his next move.
For those online, the speculation was thrown into overdrive.
‘Is this one of those mind games where we analyze if you’re walking towards or away from us?’ asked one user.
‘My heart can’t handle the cryptic s*** so if you could please consider that with your social media strategy moving forward I would appreciated it thank you,’ wrote another.
‘Tom Brady has left the building, except he’s entering the building, so he’s either staying with the Patriots or not staying with them. Very obvious. Solved your riddle Brady. Please tweet something more challenging next time,’ joked another Twitter follower.
Adam Schefter who covers the NFL for ESPN and describes himself as a Senior NFL Insider attempted to quell some of the speculation.
‘Am told that this tweet is not related to Tom Brady’s football future. Repeat, not related to his football future. But the speculation sure is fun,’ he posted.
It didn’t take long before Twitter users tried to make sense of the cryptic photo Brady posted
Adam Schefter who covers the NFL for ESPN and describes himself as a Senior NFL Insider attempted to quell some of the speculation
This was the Patriots Quarterback’s first public sighting since the end of the season and the first year Brady was not selected to play in the Pro Bowl in 12 years
Gisele was said to have been visiting Montgomery Bell Academy, a preparatory day school for boys in Nashville.
The quarterback has played in nine Super Bowls for the Patriots, winning six.
The Tennessee Titans could be a good spot for Brady to continue his career as he already has a relationship with Titans head coach Mike Vrabel, who played for the Patriots.
Brady says he plans to play football next season when he’s 43, but he is not tipping his hand about a return to New England as he prepares to become an unrestricted free agent.
‘I’m open-minded about the process,’ Brady said Sunday in his weekly interview with Westwood One radio.
‘At the same time, I love playing football and I want to continue to play and do a great job. I’m looking forward to what’s ahead. Whatever the future may bring, I’ll embrace it with open arms.’
All of Brady’s decorated 20-year NFL career has been spent in New England, where he has won six Super Bowl rings.
He made $23million this season after signing a contract extension last off-season that technically took him through the 2021 season.
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady says he is ‘open-minded’ about playing elsewhere for the upcoming season just a day after he was spotted chatting with Raiders owner Mark Davis in Las Vegas on Saturday
But the final two years of that deal automatically void at the end of the league year – March 18 – and the deal prevents New England from using the franchise tag, allowing Brady to call all the shots about his destination in 2020 and beyond.
CBSSports.com’s Jason La Canfora reported that it would be ‘extremely surprising’ for Brady to reach agreement with the Patriots before the start of free agency.
Brady walked off the field at the end of his 20th NFL season and said he plans to be back for another – if not in New England, somewhere else
Patriots owner Robert Kraft said this month that he ‘hopes and prays’ Brady plays for the Patriots next season.
Brady led the Patriots to a 12-4 record in 2019, completing 60.8 percent of his 613 passes for 4,057 yards, 24 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
He failed to make the Pro Bowl for the first time since the 2008 season.
Earlier this week, the father-of-three was seen enjoying family time as he strolled around New York City with his wife and children, but his future with the NFL remains uncertain.
The NFL announced its Pro Bowl teams in December, omitting Brady’s name for the first time since 2008, when he suffered a torn knee ligament in the season opener and missed the rest of the year.
The six-time Super Bowl champion’s inconsistent 2019 campaign cost him a 12th consecutive Pro Bowl selection.
Brady, 42, will become a free agent for the first time on March 18, and while he has not ruled out a return to New England, quarterback has reportedly moved out of his Brookline, Massachusetts mansion and into a $9 million estate in Greenwich, Connecticut – roughly three hours from the Patriots’ home field and practice facility.
Although Greenwich is only about an hour away from New York, it seems unlikely Brady would sign with the Jets or Giants because both teams are heavily invested in young quarterbacks Sam Darnold and Daniel Jones, respectively.
However, Brady is familiar with the Giants’ new coach Joe Judge, who previously served under Patriots head coach Bill Belichick in New England.
Brady and Bundchen recently reduced their asking price for the Brookline mansion to $33.9 million – around $8 million less than the original listing last summer.
The couple has also owned an apartment in the Manhattan neighborhood of Tribeca for several years.
Brady and Bundchen recently reduced their asking price for the Brookline mansion to $33.9 million – around $8 million less than the original listing last summer.
‘I would say it’s pretty unlikely, hopefully unlikely’ that he would retire, Brady told reporters after the playoffs loss this month
Tom Brady is pictured celebrating with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after defeating the Atlanta Falcons during Super Bowl 51 in Houston, Texas in 2017
Brady celebrates in 2015 holding up the Vince Lombardi Trophy after Patriots defeated the Seattle Seahawks 28-24 in Super Bowl XLIX
Ahead of his first foray onto the open market, the Gillette Stadium suite used by his wife their children was emptied earlier this month.
‘The Brady suite at Gillette Stadium where [Bundchen] has been known to watch her husband play football has been cleaned out,’ WEEI’s Greg Hill, a Boston sports radio host, told his listeners. ‘It would appear to be, by those who are in the know, that it has been cleaned out in way that perhaps it has never has been cleaned out before.’
Brady has remained largely non-committal publicly, refusing to rule out a return to the defending champion Patriots, but also keeping his options open.
The only indication the 42-year-old has given is to stay that it is ‘pretty unlikely’ he will retire.
Brady is pictured after the Patriots defeat the Los Angeles Rams during Super Bowl LIII in 2019
New England Patriots’ Tom Brady, right, shakes hands with Indianapolis Colts’ Peyton Manning after a game between New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts in 2006
Patriots owner Robert Kraft (left) hopes Brady returns, but says the six-time Super Bowl champion deserves the opportunity to decide his own future after 20 successful NFL seasons
‘I would say it’s pretty unlikely, hopefully unlikely’ that he would retire, Brady told reporters after the playoffs loss this month. ‘I love playing football. I don’t know what it looks like moving forward.’
Brady’s decision could drag well into the offseason, as many of the NFL’s free agents will not be signed until after April’s draft, making it difficult for any player to weigh offers until the initial deals are made.
Obviously Brady’s reportedly rocky relationship with coach Bill Belichick will be critical.
The two have been complimentary towards each other in public, with Belichick saying in 2018 that there’s no quarterback he’d rather have, and Brady telling Boston radio station WEEI last year that he gets along well with his ‘great mentor.’