Tom Brady Officially Announces NFL Retirement in Lengthy Instagram Statement
By Darren Hartwell ••
NBC Universal, Inc.
Legendary quarterback Tom Brady is retiring after 22 season in the NFL. He played 20 years of his career with the New England Patriots and finished his career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback officially announced his NFL retirement Tuesday morning, sharing a lengthy statement on his Instagram and Twitter accounts.
Brady's announcement ends any speculation he'll return for a 23rd NFL season. ESPN's Adam Schefter and Jeff Darlington reported Saturday that the 44-year-old QB plans to retire, but Brady and his camp pushed back against those reports, with the QB reportedly telling the Buccaneers at the time that he was nowhere near a decision about his future.
Brady also suggested Monday night on the "Let's Go" podcast with Jim Gray he'd take some time to make a decision, but it appears he need less than 12 hours to end his career on his own terms.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback has made 10 Super Bowl appearances, 15 Pro Bowls, three MVP awards and countless other records.
Brady, who spent the first 20 years of his career with the New England Patriots, had said for years that he planned on playing until he was 45.
Brady, who turns 45 on Aug. 3, has already outlasted every player from his own draft class in 2000, when he was drafted 199th overall by the Patriots in Bill Belichick’s first season. He’s also outlasted every player drafted in 2001, 2002 and 2003.
Brady led the league in both passing yards (5,316) and passing touchdowns (43) in 2021, the second time in his career he's led the NFL in both categories in the same season (2007).
A member of the Hall of Fame all-decades teams from both the 2000s and 2010s, Brady retires as the NFL’s all-time leader in passing yards (84,520), passing touchdowns (624) and completed passes (7,263). Brady retires after 47 career playoff games, most all-time and 15 more than the next-closest player in former Patriots teammate Adam Vinatieri. His 318 regular season appearances are seventh-most all-time.
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Patriots quarterback Tom Brady smiles on the sidelines as the clock winds down on New England’s win over the Indianapolis Colts, the first game in the historic rivalry between Brady and quarterback Peyton Manning. At Foxboro Stadium, Sept. 30, 2001.
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Tom Brady checks off a play at the line in the second half in a 16-13 overtime victory over the Oakland Raiders. Known outside New England as the “tuck rule game” due to a controversial ruling that helped Brady, Patriots fans will always know the division game as the Snow Bowl. Played on Jan. 19, 2002, Brady was on his way to his first Super Bowl.
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Brady makes a pass to J.R. Redmond during the game-winning drive against the St. Louis Rams in Super Bowl XXXVI on Feb. 3, 2002.
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Brady relishes his first championship at Super Bowl XXXVI.
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Brady and head coach Bill Belichick celebrate the first of six the pair would win together.
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Back in Boston on Feb. 5, 2002, Brady took part in what would become a regular occurrence: A Patriots Super Bowl parade.
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Brady on field in his second Super Bowl appearance on Feb. 1, 2004, against the Carolina Panthers.
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Two years after winning his first championship, Brady celebrates the Patriots’ victory in Super Bowl XXXVIII, holding up the Lombardi Trophy alongside running back Antowain Smith.
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Brady and the Patriots celebrate during a victory rally held before a crowd estimated by police to number 1.5 million people in Boston on Feb. 3, 2004.
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Brady on the field during Super Bowl XXXIX against the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 6, 2005.
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Brady and Patriots owner Robert Kraft celebrate after defeating the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX, their third championship in four years.
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Brady hoists the Lombardi Trophy after Super Bowl XXXIX.
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Brady waves to crowds along Boylston Street in Boston during the Patriots’ victory parade on Feb. 8, 2005 after winning Super Bowl XXXIX.
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Brady and Patriots fans were stunned on Feb. 3, 2008, when a perfect season slipped out of their grasp at Super Bowl XLII. New England went 16-0 in the regular season and won two playoff games before falling 17-14 to the New York Giants.
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The next game after Super Bowl XLII went even worse. Brady limped off the field after taking hit to left knee and tearing his ACL and MCL, ending his season after less than a quarter.
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Many thought the Patriots dynasty was over by 2010, but Brady found his new favorite target, tight end Rob Gronkowski. The pair is pictured in New England’s divisional playoff game against the Denver Broncos in on Jan. 14, 2012.
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Four years after losing to the Giants in the Super Bowl, the Patriots did it again. Brady leaves the field after Super Bowl XLVI.
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Brady calls a play against the Seattle Seahawks during Super Bowl XLIX on Feb. 1, 2015.
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A decade after his last championship, Brady once again held up the Vince Lombardi Trophy to celebrates the Patriots’ 28-24 victory over the Seahawks at Super Bowl XLIX.
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Brady waves a towel at his fourth Super Bowl victory parade in Boston on Feb. 4, 2015.
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In one of the most memorable games of Brady’s career, he calls a play against the Atlanta Falcons at Super Bowl LI on Feb. 5, 2017.
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Brady was particularly excited after beating the Atlanta Falcons 34-28 in overtime at Super Bowl LI, a game in which the Patriots had trailed 28-3. The comeback was the largest in Super Bowl history.
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Brady raises the Lombardi during another rally in Boston after winning Super Bowl LI.
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In his first Super Bowl loss to a team not called the Giants, Brady sits on the field after fumbling against the Philadelphia Eagles during the fourth quarter in Super Bowl LII on Feb. 4, 2018.
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Brady led the Patriots to one more championship, beating the Los Angeles Rams 13-3 at Super Bowl LIII on Feb. 03, 2019.
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Brady and Belichick celebrate what would be their last Super Bowl together. The duo can take credit for six championships.
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Brady holding the Lombardi Trophy at a victory parade in Boston, celebrating the last Super Bowl he won as a member of the Patriots.
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In the first game he played in another uniform, Brady took the field as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He is seen here celebrating a touchdown run against the New Orleans Saints on Sept. 13, 2020.
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Brady and Gronkowski, who came out of retirement to join him in Tampa Bay, celebrate after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV on Feb. 07, 2021, a 31-9 victory.
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Brady hoists up the Lombardi again after winning his seventh Super Bowl, being named Super Bowl MVP for a fifth time.
Brady had been attempting to lead the Buccaneers to back-to-back Super Bowl titles, something no team had accomplished since Brady’s Patriots in 2003-04.
Over 285 appearances with New England, including 283 starts, Brady went 219-64, plus 30-11 in the postseason and 6-3 in Super Bowls. He won MVP honors with the Patriots in 2007, 2010 and 2017, though didn't win the Super Bowl in any of those seasons. Brady was MVP in Super Bowls XXXVI, XXXVIII, XLIX and LI with New England and LV in Tampa Bay.
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