Tom Brady has been saying for years that he plans on playing in the NFL until he’s 45 years old, but now that he’s just one year away from reaching that age, it seems that he’s come up with a new goal: 50.
Brady was asked about playing until 50 during an episode of the “Tommy & Gronky” show and he seemed open to the idea.
“Wow. Seems to be a really hot question lately,” Brady said of playing until 50. “Can Tom Brady play until 50? Like, 50 years old? Fifty.”
To help explain how many more years Brady would have to add to his career, Gronk did some quick math for his quarterback, “You’re 44, so that’s six more years.”
Brady then responded by saying that playing until 50 definitely seems possible.
“I don’t find it so difficult,” Brady said. “Plus, in Florida, it’s kind of a retiree state, so I feel like I can play and then just glide into retirement. I think I can. I think it’s a yes.”
The video is worth watching if only so you can see Gronk doing math.
If Brady does stick around for six more years, that means we could also get six more years of Gronk. The tight end’s brother said last week that Gronk will likely retire whenever Brady decides to retire.
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Brady’s answer to the question was somewhat surprising and that’s mostly because he’s definitely changed his tune on the subject over the past few months. Back in June, the seven-time Super Bowl winner quickly shot down the idea of playing until 50 after Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht suggested that he might play that long.
“Fifty? That’s a long time. Even for me, that’s a long time,” Brady said when asked about Licht’s comment.
Of course, Brady might feel better about playing until 50 after seeing how well he’s still playing at 44. In the Buccaneers’ 31-29 season-opening win over the Cowboys, the ageless quarterback showed that he can still play at a championship-level by throwing for 379 yards and four touchdowns.
Instead of retiring at 45 like he originally planned, Brady now seems to be indicating that age will no longer be a factor in his retirement decision and that he’s going to keep playing as long as he thinks he’s good enough to help his team win a Super Bowl, and based on the opener, he definitely still seems to be playing at that level.
“I’ll know when the time’s right,” Brady said of retirement in mid-August. “If I can’t… if I’m not a championship-level quarterback, then I’m not gonna play. If I’m a liability to the team, I mean, no way. But if I think I can win a championship, then I’ll play.”
If Brady does play until he’s 50, he’ll smash the record for oldest person to ever play in the NFL. The record currently belongs to George Blanda, who was 48 years old when he played in his final game in December 1975, which means Brady would have to play until at least November 2025 to break that record. If he plays until he’s 50, that means Brady would be in the NFL through the 2027 season.
