Tom Brady Says ‘Never Say Never’ About a Future Return to the NFL on ‘Let’s Go!’

Following his announcement on February 1 that he is stepping away from football — after an unmatched, record-breaking career spanning 20 seasons with the New England Patriots and two with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — Tom Brady spoke on the most recent episode of the SiriusXM “Let’s Go!” podcast about his possible future return to the NFL.

“[It’s] certainly not that I can’t play, or continue to play, but I think there’s an important choice for me to make,” Brady said to co-host Jim Gray, explaining how he wants to focus on things outside of football as he gets older. “And it just, in the end, felt like it was the right time to do it.”

Referring to his own and other NFL legends’ past retirements, Brady added, “The game just goes on. And it should. And it’s gonna outlast everybody. But I was fortunate to do it for a long time.”

However, Brady didn’t seem 100 percent firm on his retirement being a permanent one. When Gray compared his situation to Michael Jordan, Muhammad Ali, and Mike Tyson, who all retired and later returned to their sports, Brady replied open-endedly, “I’m just gonna take things as they come. I think that’s the best way to put it. And I don’t think anything never — you know, you never say never. At the same time, I know that I’m very — I feel very good about my decision. So, I don’t know how I’ll feel six months from now.”

Brady’s 22-season career ended with 316 game starts and an all-time record of 243-73 with 84,520 passing yards and 7,263 completions. He has five Super Bowl MVP Awards.