Tom Brady officially said goodbye to New England

[RockinRyA]

I know that there's a solid contingent of Boston area people for whom the Bruins matter a lot and there are several very popular Bruins players.

(personally I've never been able to make myself care about hockey unless the Bruins are already in a deep playoff run)

With that said, I don't think there's any question that the guy with the biggest national profile in Boston sports now is Jayson Tatum, especially if you are thinking in terms of potential for becoming an even bigger star.

Not just nationally but international as well. Dude is 4th in jersey sales in a sport with more global reach.

[tazzmaniac]

I know that there's a solid contingent of Boston area people for whom the Bruins matter a lot and there are several very popular Bruins players.

(personally I've never been able to make myself care about hockey unless the Bruins are already in a deep playoff run)

With that said, I don't think there's any question that the guy with the biggest national profile in Boston sports now is Jayson Tatum, especially if you are thinking in terms of potential for becoming an even bigger star.

Not just nationally but international as well. Dude is 4th in jersey sales in a sport with more global reach.

That's quite impressive considering he's the least hyped in the top 15 other than maybe Kemba. 

[ImShakHeIsShaq]

I'm mad y'all let him go so he could come to the Bucs! FFS!

It's going to be interesting to see him on the Bucs. 

On the one hand, Winston was able to put up over 5k yards, and he's a much sloppier QB than Brady. 

Could Brady have a rejuvenation in Tampa, with something like Winston's production minus all the INTs?  I guess it's possible.

I didn't have a real opinion one way or the other on whether to keep JW, I also understand why they got Shady Brady. I just hate this like I would have hated Kobe on my team or LBJ. I love the Bucs, I'll always support them but I need time before I get on the TB train. I'll be sick every time he does something cheer-worthy and my Bucs love will have me happy at the same time. UGHHHH!!! Stupid Pats!!!

[DefenseWinsChamps]

Bucs need a RB. They need a guy who can fall forward for 3-4 yards and a guy who can catch the ball.

Having dabbled with their RBs in fantasy football and watching their games closely, I can confidently say that they are not better than the Patriots.

They could probably draft one, but is there anyone available in free agency? They have a ton of cash right now.

[gouki88]

Bucs need a RB. They need a guy who can fall forward for 3-4 yards and a guy who can catch the ball.

Having dabbled with their RBs in fantasy football and watching their games closely, I can confidently say that they are not better than the Patriots.

They could probably draft one, but is there anyone available in free agency? They have a ton of cash right now.

Maybe Devonta Freeman? He was just cut, and he's still under 30. Or maybe a bigger name like Melvin Gordon?

[johnnygreen]

For the first time in many years, I will finally have interest in watching the Pats on a weekly basis again. Their regular season games have been so uninteresting for a long time now. I have no interest in watching blowouts and noncompetitive games. There was never a question if the Pats would win their division, but rather if they were going to be a 1 or 2 seed.

[nickagneta]

Reports on Boston sports radio is the offer given Brady by Belichick was one year $17 million.

That's insulting!!!

[Phantom255x]

Reports on Boston sports radio is the offer given Brady by Belichick was one year $17 million.

That's insulting!!!

If that's actually true, then I actually support Brady in leaving. What a joke.

Do you see what all these other QBs in the market are going for? And it wasn't even a multi-year deal, they offered just 1 year...

[jambr380]

Reports on Boston sports radio is the offer given Brady by Belichick was one year $17 million.

That's insulting!!!

If that's true, it's very confusing. The Pats are already going to be carrying $13.5M in dead money on the books in 2020 for Brady even with him gone. Only being willing to be pay an additional $3.5M to actually have Brady on the team doesn't make any sense unless BB was hell-bent on getting Brady off the team. Stidham better be the real deal...or at least as good as Garoppolo.

Reports of Antonio Brown joining Brady in TB only compound the matter. We really could have used him last season. Also, I just realized Tampa Bay and Tom Brady have the same initials - I wonder if that secretly played a factor in his decision 

[johnnygreen]

Reports on Boston sports radio is the offer given Brady by Belichick was one year $17 million.

That's insulting!!!

If that’s true, then good job by Bill. A contract should be based on what the player is expected to perform in the future, and should not be based on what he did in the past. Brady was already compensated for his past performance. And I don’t want to hear how Brady took less money to help the team. No one forced Tom to sign those contracts. Brady’s legacy is based on winning, which was part of the equation in taking less money. If he wanted more money, then maybe his legacy is different today because the wins may not have been there due to having different players.

[PhoSita]

Reports on Boston sports radio is the offer given Brady by Belichick was one year $17 million.

That's insulting!!!

You don't pay for past performance, you pay for expected performance.


Bill likely expects that Brady will

(a) Miss time due to injuries or be significantly banged up much of the time

(b) Play like an average starting QB

[Boris Badenov]

Reports on Boston sports radio is the offer given Brady by Belichick was one year $17 million.

That's insulting!!!

You don't pay for past performance, you pay for expected performance.


Bill likely expects that Brady will

(a) Miss time due to injuries or be significantly banged up much of the time

(b) Play like an average starting QB

Interesting breakdown here on the "expected performance" front.

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/28919127/grading-tom-brady-move-bucs-facts-fiction-fit-goat-tampa

And some data that I think argue more in the other direction here:

https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/tom-brady-and-the-bucs-are-a-good-match-unless-brady-shows-his-age/

But as you note and I mentioned, above, (a) is probably the bigger concern than (b) in your post.

[SparzWizard]

Reports on Boston sports radio is the offer given Brady by Belichick was one year $17 million.

That's insulting!!!

That's insulting of Belichick to not give Brady the weapons and protection needed to win. Also, his arrogance in benching Butler in that Superbowl costed them a championship. That I will never let go of. Future looking bleak for New England.

[johnnygreen]

Reports on Boston sports radio is the offer given Brady by Belichick was one year $17 million.

That's insulting!!!

That's insulting of Belichick to not give Brady the weapons and protection needed to win. Also, his arrogance in benching Butler in that Superbowl costed them a championship. That I will never let go of. Future looking bleak for New England.

Benching Malcom Butler had nothing to do with the Pats losing the Super Bowl. Those Philly receivers had little to no separation from the Pats DBs. Unlike, seemingly most teams facing the Pats in the playoffs, that Philly team wasn’t bothered by the aura of Bill, Tom, and the Patriots. The problem was Brady couldn’t score TD’s in that first half, and Philly was able to dictate the pace the whole game. I know Brady threw for over 500 yards, but the game felt like it was already decided and those numbers weren’t relevant. Brady’s performance reminded me of Devin Booker’s 70 against the Celtics.

On another Malcom Bulter note, I had to google his name this past season, because I wasn't sure if he was still playing. After he signed with the Titans, I haven't heard his name since.

[johnnygreen]

Assuming Brady does sign with Tampa Bay, I wonder what kind of offense they will run. Does Brady have to adjust to Bruce Arians offense, or does the offense adjust to Brady’s preferred style. If it’s the latter, does Tampa call Bill Belichick and inquire about trading for Josh McDaniels? After all, someone will need to spend time with the offensive weapons to learn the system.