“Tension” with Bill Belichick led to Tom Brady’s exit from the Patriots
Tom Brady and Bill Belichick won six Super Bowls as quarterback and head coach respectively, establishing a dynasty on the way.
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Tom Brady with Bill Belichick (Images via NBC News)
Tom Brady has finally shed light on the factors that led to his departure from the New England Patriots after two decades of dominance. In his latest newsletter, the legendary quarterback opened up about the decision-making process that pushed him toward free agency in 2020.
Brady acknowledged that, after twenty years, his path and that of head coach Bill Belichick began to diverge. The difference in vision created a “natural tension,” making a split inevitable. Although they won six Super Bowls and 17 division titles together, Brady needed a new challenge and a space to test himself without Belichick.
In his newsletter, 199, Brady confessed that the natural tension between them could only be broken by one of them leaving the franchise.
The reality was, after twenty years together, a natural tension had developed between where Coach Belichick and I were headed in our careers, and where the Patriots were moving as a franchise. It was the kind of tension that could only be resolved by some kind of split or one of us reassessing our priorities.
Tom Brady noted
At the time, the Patriots lacked the offensive firepower to maximize Brady’s strengths. His move to Tampa Bay proved successful, as he led the Buccaneers to a Super Bowl win in his first season, silencing doubts about his ability to thrive outside of New England.
Brady’s latest revelations are an eye-opener to the complexities in the industry, including conflicts that arise despite years of playing together. It also speaks volumes of the complexities involved in making big decisions, sometimes ones that necessarily aren’t the ones one would like.
Tom Brady chose the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after careful evaluation
Brady went on to describe how he approached free agency cautiously. He ranked various factors—such as team talent, coaching, and even weather—on a weighted scale with ranges 1 to 3.
In his newsletter, he admitted that he wanted his choice to be aligned with what he wants in his life and what mattered to him the most. He recollected his weighted scale, on which, Brady noted a 3 for the Bucs because of players like Chris Godwin and Mike Evans. He also noted a 3 for head coach and even practice day weather.
I asked myself, as someone headed into their forties with school-age kids and twenty years worth of battle scars, what truly mattered to me now? The presence of skill players was a 3 in terms of importance, for example, and the Bucs graded out as a 3 because of guys like Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. The same was true for the head coach.
Tom Brady penned down
Brady went on to reveal that Tampa Bay Buccaneers graded out better than New England Patriots in most of the items on his twenty-something list. The Chicago Bears were yet another team Brady was looking into.
In the end, I chose Tampa, almost exactly five years ago now, because, in the aggregate, it graded out higher than New England along those twenty or so dimensions. It’s not much more complicated than that.
Tom Brady added
Furthermore, he has previously stated that his son Jack also played a significant role in choosing the Tampa Bay Bucs deal. If the Super Bowl celebration then was any indication, the deal worked out better for the player. Tom Brady was as ferocious as ever on the field and on his best moments in the aftermath as well.
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