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Tom Brady Says Titans' Ryan Tannehill Wasn't Subject of 'That Motherf--ker' Comment
August 18, 2021
Tampa Bay Buccaneers star Tom Brady said Ryan Tannehill was not the unnamed quarterback he previously criticized on HBO's The Shop.
Brady discussed his admiration for the Tennessee Titans quarterback with reporters Wednesday:
TURRON DAVENPORT @TDavenport_NFLTom Brady says he has a lot of respect for Ryan Tannehill. Joked that they've faced each other and Tannehill has beat him a lot of times. Brady also said he wasn't speaking about Tannehill when he made the "that team wanted that MFer over me" comments. <a href="https://t.co/XBGjo0mROr">pic.twitter.com/XBGjo0mROr</a>
The speculation came in June after Brady discussed last year's free agency, noting one team chose not to pursue him:
Bleacher Report @BleacherReport“One of the teams, they weren’t interested at the very end. I was thinking, ‘You’re sticking with that motherf--ker?’”<a href="https://twitter.com/TomBrady?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@TomBrady</a> kept receipts on his free agency 🤐 <a href="https://twitter.com/brgridiron?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@brgridiron</a><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheShopHBO?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheShopHBO</a> premieres Friday at 9:30pm on <a href="https://twitter.com/hbomax?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@hbomax</a> <a href="https://t.co/lDW8ywrLLP">pic.twitter.com/lDW8ywrLLP</a>
The Titans were considered a potential landing spot for Brady, especially with his connection to head coach Mike Vrabel, but they re-signed Tannehill instead on a four-year, $118 million deal.
Brady signed with the Buccaneers and led them to a Super Bowl title in his first year.
Brady still knows what Tannehill can do, noting the Titans quarterback beat him "quite a few times."
Tannehill has a respectable 5-6 record in head-to-head games against Brady, including four wins when the two were division rivals on the Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots. After moving to the Titans, Tannehill helped hand Brady his final loss in New England during the 2019 playoffs.
Of course, the recent praise only raises questions about who Brady was referring to in his comment on The Shop.
The San Francisco 49ers and Las Vegas Raiders were considered potential options early in the process, but they stuck with Jimmy Garoppolo and Derek Carr, respectively. Garoppolo also previously backed up Brady in New England, which could lead to added anger if the 49ers chose him instead.
Considering Tampa Bay's success last season, whoever it was who passed on the quarterback is likely regretting it.