Reaction to the “Tom vs Time” Epilogue That Dropped Today
Tom vs Time was a hell of a series last year during the NFL season. It kind of gets away from “The Patriot Way” because it actually allows us to look behind the curtain, but it was really cool to actually see Tom Brady function as an actual person as opposed to this stiff robot that we’ve seen since the start of his career.
When the announcement dropped that this was coming out, Patriots Twitter was starting to drop those conspiracy theories that we LOVE. People were wondering if this was Tom about to announce a possible retirement after this season and blah blah blah.
But it actually seemed like an explanation for everything that went down over the offseason. It was only five minutes so you really couldn’t cram too much, but I mean, for me at least, it provided some clarity in regards to his absence from OTAs and this “strained” relationship with Bill.
Was it a clear overreaction for Patriots fans and the media to assume that Brady missing OTAs meant that he was still livid with Belichick? Yeah, of course it was but that’s what we do. He talks about how he feels like it’s important to give his kids this time over the offseason because he’s so busy from the start of football season to the end. He wanted to get as much done with them as possible so sure, I’ll buy that one. You know, the guy’s a dad and we ignore that a lot because “TOM IS SO DEDICATED TO FOOTBALL GUYS! WHY WOULD HE MISS OTAs GUYS!? HE’S NEVER DONE THIS BEFORE! THIS ISN’T LIKE HIM!” The guy’s got a family. Let’s chill.
He kind of dips into not having fun anymore. Well, at least for the past couple of years and he blames it on himself and then it shows a clip of him working with Jules and Danny Amendola. Great, but we all know that you’re eluding to Bill. He talks about how relationships go through certain things when you’ve been together for so long. How the media likes to find drama to write and talk about which couldn’t be more true. When I get something to talk about I’m all over it. But with saying all of this, he doesn’t really mention how his current status with his head coach is and I find that sort of troubling. Sure, the media most likely made the story bigger than it actually was, but why not put it to bed now?
The Epilogue dropping ahead of the season is big for Patriots fans because it helps answer some of those questions that we’ve had… But it also left some doors open. His retirement age is brought up and instead of just dropping the age of 45 as his target, he talks about how it will be challenging to get there. That’s still his plan, but he opened up an escape door if he needs it. All he has to say is, “I said it would be hard and I just couldn’t make it there.” That leaves the retirement escape route open for business as early as next year. I don’t think he’ll use it, but this is one of the first times where we’ve actually heard Tom Brady say that retiring earlier is a possibility. At least from what I can recall.
One thing though… This gets me jacked up for Sunday’s opening kickoff at Gillette. Yeah, I’ll be there. (humble brag)
You love fantasy sports but getting tired of the same thing every year? Stop it. Join ThriveFantasy today where you bet on only the top tier players and gain points based on prop bets. Sign up today using the Couch Guy Sports link NOW & get in on the action. (Must deposit a minimum of $10 upon signup)
-Nick Quaglia (@NickQuag)