Tom Brady 'Slammed' Door Shut on Potential NFL Return, Buccaneers' Bruce Arians Says

Speculation about whether Tom Brady will come out of retirement apparently isn't going to stop any time in the near future, and Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians had to address it at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday.

"He slammed it shut when I talked to him," Arians told reporters when asked if the all-time great shut the door on returning to the field.

Arians later added the he would have no interest in accommodating Brady if he wanted to come back to play for a different team:

That there is constant discussion about whether Brady will come back isn't surprising considering he defied age at 44 years old and led the NFL with 5,316 passing yards and 43 touchdown throws while leading the Buccaneers to the NFC South title in 2021.

He also helped Tampa Bay win its second Super Bowl title in franchise history during his first season with the team in 2020.

The future Hall of Famer finished his career with seven Lombardi Trophies, five Super Bowl MVPs, three league MVPs and 15 Pro Bowl nods as the widely accepted greatest quarterback in NFL history.

That resume alone will mean he stays in the spotlight until the Buccaneers officially start the 2022 campaign with someone else under center, and Brady didn't exactly help quiet any rumors when he said on his podcast, "You never say never," when talking about potentially returning (h/t Joey Knight of the Tampa Bay Times).

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk also reported last month that, "There's a definite and palpable sense that he will play again; some in league circles already believe he could be back by July. Of this year."

Yet Arians was fairly definitive of his evaluation of the situation, which means Tampa Bay will need to make a quarterback decision at some point.

The head coach told reporters Tuesday that Kyle Trask, who the Buccaneers selected out of Florida with a second-round pick in 2021, will have an opportunity to win the starting job even though he didn't appear in a game as a rookie.

Arians also said he's "not totally" opposed to signing Jameis Winston but added he doesn't believe it would be in the best interest of the quarterback.

Tampa Bay selected Winston with the No. 1 pick of the 2015 NFL draft, and he spent his first five years in the NFL with the organization. He notably led the league with 5,109 passing yards but also 30 interceptions in 2019.