Report: Tom Brady Called Russell Gage to Recruit WR to Buccaneers in NFL Free Agency

One of the many benefits of having Tom Brady as your quarterback is his ability to recruit talent to the team. 

Per Peter Schrager of Good Morning Football and Fox Sports, Brady called Russell Gage on Monday to let him know he was a fan of his game and that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are putting something special together in an attempt to lure him. 

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported Tuesday that Gage intends to sign with the Bucs. 

Brady ended his brief retirement after 40 days when he posted a message on Twitter announcing he would be returning for a 23rd NFL season and playing with Tampa Bay:

The addition of Gage gives the Buccaneers a trio of wide receivers that also includes Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. 

Godwin, who received the franchise tag for the second consecutive year, could miss the start of the regular season. He had surgery in January after tearing his ACL and MCL during Tampa Bay's Week 15 loss to the New Orleans Saints. 

During Brady's brief hiatus, the Buccaneers' outlook was uncertain with several key players facing free agency this offseason after Tampa Bay pushed all of its chips in to bring back every starter from the Super Bowl LV victory over the Kansas City Chiefs. 

When Godwin is healthy, pairing him with Evans gives the Bucs one of the best receiving duos in the NFL. Evans has had at least 1,000 yards in each of his eight seasons. Godwin has surpassed the 1,000-yard mark in two of the previous three years.  

Gage can take over the role that had been mostly occupied by Antonio Brown since 2020.

He has developed into a solid No. 3 wide receiver over the past four seasons with the Atlanta Falcons. The 26-year-old has averaged 101.5 targets, 69 receptions, 778 receiving yards and four touchdowns per season since becoming a focal point of the Atlanta offense two years ago. 

The Bucs are looking to get back to the Super Bowl after losing 30-27 to the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC Divisional Round.