After briefly retiring from the NFL following the 2021-22 season, Tom Brady came out of retirement a few months later and is back with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But one NFL reporter wonders if Brady is fully committed to the team, especially as the 45-year-old quarterback takes a surprising leave of absence from the team.
During an appearance on Colin Cowherd’s The Herd, NFL reporter Ben Volin expressed concern about Brady’s commitment to the Bucs, saying the seven-time Super Bowl winner looked “miserable” at a recent practice.
“I do wonder where his head is at right now,” Volin told Cowherd. “He was so good at 44, there is no doubt in our minds that if Brady is fully committed he can have a terrific season at 45, but there are definitely signs that his head is not fully into it. I try not to be the body language police, but I was at Bucs practice yesterday and he looked miserable.”
Volin goes on to explain that with longtime teammate Rob Gronkowski retired and several other familiar teammates missing, Brady just doesn’t look the same.
“I don’t think he loves the humidity in Tampa; it is very swampy out here every morning,” Volin said. “His buddy Gronk has retired, that’s his running mate, that’s his guy, and now he looks all over the field and he’s throwing to Kyle Rudolph, Chris Godwin is banged up and we’re not sure when he’s going to be himself again. Brady’s center [Ryan Jensen] goes down. There are just a lot of things going on with the team, and we also know playing with the Bucs was not his number one wish this year.”
There have been some positive reports about Brady this preseason, however. Tampa Bay quarterbacks coach said last week that Brady’s arm is “better than I’ve ever seen it.” But this latest report will certainly have Buccaneers fans a little concerned heading into the season.
