The Tampa Bay Buccaneers plan to go all in on Tom Brady, according to Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times.
Brady is set to hit free agency on March 18 and the New England Patriots haven’t gained any traction on re-signing the 42-year-old. There have reportedly been teams who have interest in Brady, but no one has expressed interest in the way the Buccaneers have.
Stroud laid it out, saying it’s not hype.
It’s true. The franchise that has not reached the postseason in 12 years will do almost anything to land the quarterback who has been to the playoffs for 11 straight seasons and won six Super Bowls. If we reach the legal free-agent tampering period Monday at noon and Brady is behind Door No. 2, Bruce Arians and the Glazer family will try to kick that sucker down for Touchdown Tommy.
This is not hype. It’s hope. This is fact, not fantasy. This is the plan. This is the Bucs’ play.
Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians has coached Ben Roethlisberger and Peyton Manning, so Brady would give him three of the NFL’s all-time greats. Arians would have to make a decision on Jameis Winston, who’s hitting the free agency market this offseason. He’s spent five seasons with the team and hasn’t proven the ability to get his team over the hump.
On Tuesday, ESPN’s Dianna Russini expressed the Buccaneers’ interest in Brady.
“I talked to Tampa Bay,” Russini said. “They would love to have Tom Brady. They are willing to give Tom Brady the things he needs, he wants, and some of those things Brady wants — control of the roster, he wants to be part of at least making decisions on play-calling.”
Because of his age, Brady isn’t fielding a world of interest from NFL teams, but the Buccaneers should surely be there come Wednesday.
