Tom Brady will for the first time in his career enter unrestricted free agency in March. The future Hall of Fame quarterback has spent 20 seasons with the New England Patriots with whom he has won six Super Bowl titles, but he could pull on the jersey of a rival come the 2020-21 season, but the decision solely rests with Brady.
There have been numerous predictions about Brady's future with a number of teams discussed as potential destinations. However, the Patriots quarterback is not willing to rush into a decision and will take his time once he becomes a free agent in March.
Brady has made it clear that retirement is completely off the table as he is keen to continue playing football but is willing to embrace the process of choosing his next destination, which seemed to indicate that he will listen to offers from every team that is interested in signing him. The Patriots will hope to see him finish career in Boston but could lose him if a rival team makes a better proposal.
"I'm open-minded about the process," Brady said, as quoted on the Boston Herald. "At the same time, I love playing football and I want to continue to play and do a great job. So I'm looking forward to what's ahead. Whatever the future may bring, I'll embrace it with open arms."
Brady advises Jimmy Garoppolo
Meanwhile, for the first time in nine seasons, Brady was not on the field during the NFL Conference Championship weekend on Sunday having dominated with the Patriots for the last decade. He was a mere spectator as the San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs booked their place in the Super Bowl after beating the Green Bay Packers and Patriots conquerors Tennessee Titans respectively.
Brady used to go to 49ers games as a child having grown up in San Mateo, California, and the legendary quarterback heaped praise on the 49ers' current signal caller Jimmy Garappolo, who was Brady's understudy in New England for four seasons. He also gave out advice to the quarterback about how to handle the hype in the build up to the Super Bowl.
"I love watching Jimmy play," Brady said prior to the Niners beating the Packers. "He's doing a great job for them."
"I think a lot of it is, you pretty much do what you've done all year," Brady, who has made nine Super Bowl appearances, said. "You got to this point with an incredible team playing really great complimentary football. It's not about doing something different. It's just about going out and just having really good, solid execution.
"If there's anything I would advise people, it's during the week not to get caught up in all the different things you can do and the media obligations and overhype it."
