New England Patriots: 3 takeaways on Brady/Belichick/Kraft exposé book
3 takeaways from the upcoming New England Patriots book
No. 3: Tom Brady’s reasons for leaving New England
For the most part, fans can figure out why Tom Brady decided to upend his life in New England and start fresh in Tampa Bay. Belichick seemed to think Brady was beginning to regress, and didn’t think it was worth it to pursue brining Brady back. They had clearly grown tired of working with each other to an extent, but that’s what happens when you work with someone for 20 years, even if you spend most your time together winning.
But Wickersham reports there was also another big reason for Brady’s departure, which also seems a bit obvious. Brady was tired of having his input on the team ignored by Belichick and Kraft. He figured since he was taking these team-friendly deals for New England, he should have some input on where that money ended up getting used.
Tampa Bay offered Brady a chance to do just that. It’s not a surprise that Rob Gronkowski and Antonio Brown were pretty quickly recruited down to Tampa to help the Bucs win a Super Bowl. It certainly wasn’t a good look for Belichick and the Pats.
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It’s fair to wonder whether New England releasing Brown after just one game due to him being accused of sexual assault was the final straw for Brady. He had taken Brown under his wing during his short stint in New England, and his loss depleted the Pats wide receiver corps. The offense stalled out towards the end of the season, and it wasn’t all that surprising to see them flame out in the wild card round against the Tennessee Titans to end their season.
Brady has basically called the shots since he ended up in Tampa, and their front office has obliged. Their rally cry after winning their Super Bowl was “run it back”, which basically meant they wanted to bring all their starters back and make another run for a Super Bowl, which they did. Brady wanted more input, and he got it. Whether this was the main reason for Brady’s departure remains to be seen, but it’s clear it was a big factor in him deciding to call it quits in New England.