Tom Brady Rumors: Latest on Patriots Departure, Buccaneers Future and More

The football world was rocked on Tuesday morning when New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady announced via social media that he would not be returning to the team for the 2020 season.

Though his departure had always been a realistic possibility, the idea of the six-time champion playing elsewhere bordered on the unthinkable for many fans.

However, it's likely Brady and the Patriots both knew this was to be the end result. According to WEEI's Dale Arnold, the Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick only made the six-time champion a one-year offer, which was also for less than what the veteran made in 2019.

As former Patriots linebacker Ted Johnson pointed out, the offer may have been an indication that New England didn't want Brady to return.

"I just think that Bill Belichick doesn't want Tom Brady as his quarterback anymore. I really feel that way," Johnson said on Arbella Early Edition (h/t Jacob Camenker of NBC Sports Boston). "Now, you're going to make maybe an offer, it's going to be a lowball offer and you can say, 'Well, we made an offer to Tom,' but you really didn't because the offer was insulting to Tom."

And it appears that the cursory offer was the only offer made to Brady before the unofficial start of free agency on Monday.

According to Tom E. Curran of NBC Sports Boston, the Patriots never made a serious effort to retain their quarterback:

So on Tuesday, Brady all but became a true free agent—the market doesn't officially open until 4 p.m. on Wednesday. The problem for the Michigan product was that the market for a soon-to-be 43-year-old quarterback isn't robust.

The Tennessee Titans—who have former Brady teammate Mike Vrabel as head coach—had just re-signed Ryan Tannehill to a four-year extension. The San Francisco 49ers, a team Brady grew up rooting for, have Jimmy Garoppolo under contract through 2022.

With New England out of the equation, Brady's options appeared limited to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Los Angeles Chargers. The Bucs have quarterback Jameis Winston scheduled to hit free agency, while Los Angeles already announced that it wasn't bringing back Philip Rivers.

It appears Tampa Bay will land Brady, though nothing official has been announced. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter and Jeff Darlington, the two are expected to sign a deal—perhaps after the start of the new league year:

The Chargers made a strong push for Brady. According to NFL Media's Ian Rapoport, both Los Angeles and Tampa Bay made offers in the $30 million-per-year range. However, money was not the only consideration for the veteran signal-caller.

Per Rapoport and NFL Media's Jim Trotter, Brady believed that playing in Tampa would be better for his family, and that was ultimately the deciding factor:

By playing for the Buccaneers, Brady gets to keep his family near the East Coast. Of course, Florida's lack of a state income tax may also have played a role in his decision.

Regardless of the reason, though, expect Brady to make it official sometime on Wednesday.