Tom Brady Rumors: Bucs Knew QB Retiring Was 'A Strong Possibility for About 2 Months'

It will not be a surprise if Tom Brady retires this summer.

Jeremy Fowler explained the decision from the perspective of the Buccaneers.

"After asking around yesterday and this morning, the sense I get is that the Bucs knew this was at least a strong possibility for about two months because early in the year Tom Brady was speaking publicly about how he wanted to play multiple years and keep this thing rolling. And then sort of behind the scenes there was a little bit of a shift in tone. As one source told me, he talked an awful lot about his family. As he should, he's got a beautiful family. And it's not that he didn't do that before, but it became clear that he was looking at the bigger picture more, wanting to spend time with his kids. And so it now looks like he'll have an opportunity to do so. And the Bucs coaches going through these interview processes, Todd Bowles and Byron Leftwich both coordinators have been up for head coaching jobs, they were doing those discussions knowing that change is possibly or likely coming in Tampa. So this is something that the organization is trying to grapple with right now and make changes for 2022."

Brady plans to retire after 22 seasons in the NFL, according to reports.

Don Yee said the decision is not finalized. According to Michael Silver of Bally Sports, the quarterback did not inform the general manager of his decision.

The 44-year-old hasn't publicly stated his next move, but he did recently discuss the role of his family in his decision.

He said that it pains his wife to see him get hit.

He said the final call might be his alone.

It's not always what I want. Brady said it was what they wanted as a family.

There is a sense among some guys in the locker room that this is it.

A chance to win back-to-back Super Bowls was ruined by a 30-27 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.

It makes Brady's pending retirement an expected result.