Tom Brady’s 22 year professional football career has come to an end. Brady leaves the game considered the NFL’s greatest quarterback with seven Super Bowl rings, five Super Bowl MVPs, and rewriting most of the NFL’s record book. 

However with Brady’s retirement, there are questions surrounding the entire league. 

1. How will this impact the Tampa Bay Buccaneers?

Without Brady, the Bucs aren’t going to be favored to make the Super Bowl unless they find a suitable option at quarterback. Also, Brady’s influence on the chemistry and the roster construction was paramount to their success which is a concern going forward. 

2. How will the NFC be impacted?

Brady’s departure makes the two teams that played in the NFC Championship Game, the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers, much easier. If Aaron Rodgers is going to play somewhere else next season, the Green Bay Packers definitely won’t benefit from Brady’s retirement. 

3. Will Brady’s legacy ever be threatened?

No, quarterback currently in the NFL will surpass what Brady accomplished over his career. Besides his Super Bowl success, Brady holds records for most touchdown passes with 624 and passing yards with nearly 85 thousand yards.

Tommy Rasizzi, a WJPS senior said, “I was shocked because he had a great season, it wasn’t like he had a bad season and it looked like he could have had a few more competitive seasons before retiring from the NFL.”

Lianna Zuvich, another WJPS senior said, “I was really shocked at first because I didn’t think he would just retire after a loss. I also didn’t expect him to retire just before the Super Bowl. I thought Tom Brady was a classy player, and for him to steal the spotlight from the Super Bowl really shocked me.”

Photo: “0 Patriots Tom Brady – Colts Robert Mathis” by Jack Kurzenknabe is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0