ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Jeff Darlington broke the internet — and the story of the year — at 2:29 PM ET, Saturday, January 29, when they reported that Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady is retiring after 22 seasons. That report very well might be true. But Brady and the people closest to him refused to confirm it immediately. However, on his Instagram, Brady confirmed his retirement.
Tom Brady is retiring from football after 22 extraordinary seasons, multiple sources tell @JeffDarlington and me.
More coming on https://t.co/rDZaVFhcDQ. pic.twitter.com/6CHWmMlyXg
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 29, 2022
Is Tom Brady retiring or not?
Schefter and Darlington are as plugged into this situation as it gets, so their information deserves the benefit of the doubt. They reported, citing multiple sources, that family, health, and competitive factors were his motivation. Plus, for a while, there was no reason to doubt it.
Shortly after the news broke, TB12 Sports — which is owned by Tom Brady — sent out a since-deleted congratulatory tweet to their boss. Around the same time, wide receiver Julian Edelman — Brady’s teammate in New England for 11 seasons, did the same.
Thanks for the memories, babe. @TomBrady pic.twitter.com/lCqCVn13tI
— Julian Edelman (@Edelman11) January 29, 2022
Current teammates Mike Evans and Chris Godwin also posted messages of gratitude.
People close to Brady push back on retirement report
But then things started getting weird. Brady’s agent, Don Yee, sent a statement to Pro Football Network that didn’t shoot down the report but didn’t exactly confirm it, either.
Statement on Tom Brady from his longtime agent Donald Yee @PFN365 pic.twitter.com/aLSDk3XZb2
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) January 29, 2022
“Tom will be the only person to express his plans with complete accuracy,” Yee said.
Brady and his father have both reportedly denied the announcement
Around the same time, Buccaneers beat writers started weighing in with news that Brady had not yet notified the organization that he was hanging it up.
What’s more, Bally Sports’ Michael Silver reported that Brady informed Buccaneers GM Jason Licht that he had not yet made a final decision on his retirement.
Then, as a grand finale, Tom Brady Sr. had his say about his son. KRON 4, a Bay Area TV station, got ahold of Brady’s dad, and the patriarch said that the report that his son is retiring is inaccurate.
JUST IN: Tom Brady Sr. tells @kron4news that his son is not retiring. Brady Sr. says an online publication started circulating an unsubstantiated rumor. However a number of NFL insiders are now reporting it. @kron4news #TomBrady #NFL
— Kylen Mills (@KylenMills) January 29, 2022
Mike Girardi of NFL Network later spoke with Brady Sr. and got the same account — in no uncertain terms.
Checked in with Tom Brady Sr. who tells me, and I quote, "This story Mike is total conjecture. Tommy has not made a final decision one way or the other and anybody else that says that he has is absolutely wrong." #TomBrady #Buccaneers
— Mike Giardi (@MikeGiardi) January 29, 2022
So what happened? Was the original right or wrong? Did ESPN get bad information? Is Brady planning to retire, but on his own terms? The indications are that looks like it might be the case based on the latest report from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
From @NFLNetwork: Tom Brady does intend to retire, per several people close to him. The pushback appears to be based on timing, rather than his eventual decision. pic.twitter.com/GSTqDkKcjF
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 29, 2022
Now, it appears it’s only a matter of when, not if, we get the official word from Tom Brady himself that he is retiring. That confirmation came on February, 1.
Tom Brady has announced his retirement pic.twitter.com/oyZ5Oflxwa
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) February 1, 2022