Ralph Vacchiano
NFL Reporter
Tom Brady turned the Tampa Bay Buccaneers into an instant Super Bowl champion after he signed with them in 2020.
Could he have done the same for the Chicago Bears?
Apparently, he almost had an opportunity to do so. During his broadcast of the Bucs’ game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday afternoon, the FOX Sports lead NFL analyst revealed that the Bears were a “stealth” contender for his services when he left the New England Patriots as a free agent. Brady went as far to say that he “seriously” thought of playing the remainder of his career in Chicago.
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“Ultimately, Chicago was a team — and I never told that story before — they were very stealth in their recruitment,” Brady said. “I was seriously considering them.
“But in the end, it came down to Tampa. It was close to my son Jack. I love [then-Bucs coach] Bruce Arians and the role he played in the offense. And ultimately, the great players like [star wide receivers] Mike Evans and Chris Godwin that I’m still out there watching today.”
Tom Brady shares notecards he used when choosing Buccaneers in free agency, reveals Bears were close
It was pretty well known at the time that the Buccaneers and the Los Angeles Chargers were two of the teams that were pursuing Brady when he departed from New England after 20 years and six Super Bowl titles. But there was only speculation about other teams in the bidding, most of which centered around the Miami Dolphins.
But nobody had much of an inkling that the Chicago Bears — who were quarterbacked by Mitchell Trubisky at the time — were involved.
During the broadcast, though, Brady was showing off several pieces of paper where he wrote down his thoughts during his free-agent process. He said he wrote down “18 criteria” for why he chose the Bucs. “And there was things all the way from the salary, obviously, to the weather to the…
Source link : https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/tom-brady-i-almost-joined-bears-2020-free-agency-after-stealth-recruitment
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Publish date : 2024-09-29 22:37:33
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