Tom Brady, Bruce Arians Pairing a 'Perfect Marriage,' Says Bucs GM Jason Licht

Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht told Scott Van Pelt on SportsCenter Thursday that the new partnership between quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bruce Arians is the "perfect marriage."

Per ESPN's Jenna Laine, Licht was responding to a question from Van Pelt as to whether "urgency could become crippling" on the team. The Bucs' championship window with the 42-year-old Brady could be small, with the 20-year veteran signing a two-year deal.

Licht responded as follows:

"I don't have a lot of concerns on that right now. We have a head coach [Bruce Arians] that, to be quite frank, isn't gonna be here for the next 15, 20 years coaching the Buccaneers. So I think it was actually a perfect marriage: You've got two guys that have got something to prove; they want to win, they want to win now; they've got the same mindset."

The 67-year-old Arians has been coaching college or pro football since 1975. He is signed with the Bucs through 2022 with a fifth-year option for 2023.

However, per Laine, "sources close to the 67-year-old head coach, who retired after the 2017 season before returning to coach the Bucs in 2019, believe he could be done coaching after two or three years."

Brady appears to have gotten off on the right foot with his new teammates, some of whom he worked with during a players-only practice session in Tampa, per Rick Stroud and Joey Knight of the Tampa Bay Times.

He's received positive reviews from Bucs tight end Cameron Brate, who said Brady seems to be a "down-to-earth good guy" and "great teammate" in an interview with Sirius XM NFL Radio.

Licht added these remarks on Brady in the Van Pelt interview: "He didn't want to come in here and be the almighty. He just wants to make sure that his teammates respect him. And he's got something to prove."

From an X's and O's standpoint, Arians and Brady appear to be on the same page, per a report from Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer, who noted that the coach and quarterback agreed to use Arians' offensive system and tailor it to the signal-caller rather than Brady bringing over concepts from the Patriots offense and everyone else having to adapt.

Brate referenced teaching Brady the new offense in the Sirius XM NFL Radio interview, saying that it was a "little weird" doing so for someone of his veteran status.

The Bucs are scheduled to begin their 2020 regular season against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, Sept. 13.