There was a real possibility that all-time great Tom Brady was going to change his jersey number from the iconic 12 to 7. The No. 7 would have represented the quarterback's chase for his seventh Super Bowl ring, which he now has a clear shot of getting with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers In a recent appearance on The Peter King Podcast, Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht said Brady was truly thinking about the switch:

“He said, ‘Oh, he's a great player. I'm not gonna take his number,” Licht told King, via Mass Live. “He goes, ‘You know what number I'm thinking of? I'm thinking of taking maybe No. 7. Is that available?' I said, ‘Yeah I think it is.' I said, ‘Why seven?' He goes, ‘Going after that seventh Super Bowl.'”

In his 21st season in the NFL, Brady led a team that has not been to the playoffs since 2007 and to the Super Bowl since 2003. In his first season with the Bucs, Tom Brady turned a struggling franchise into a championship-caliber team. This feat continues to add to the growing list of why he is arguably the best football player to ever play the game.

At the end of the day, the number on Tom Brady's jersey is just that — a number. The success he's having with the Bucs has a lot to do with his own set of skills, experience, and uncanny ability to will his team to win. He threw for 4,633 yards and 40 touchdowns and completed 65.7% of his passes. He helped the Buccaneers' most talented wide receiver, Mike Evans, reach his seventh consecutive 1000 receiving-yard season, along with a career-high 13 touchdowns.

Brady has a chance to win his seventh ring next week, and he is going to give it his all against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 55.