Tom Brady rocked the NFL landscape when he decided to leave the New England Patriots in free agency. The legendary quarterback ended up signing a two-year deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last month.
While the idea of Brady in a different uniform seems jarring to most, not everyone is shocked that the 42-year-old chose to move on.
Take Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, for example.
During an appearance on ESPN First Take, Fitzpatrick said that he was not surprised about Brady's departure:
Article Continues Below“I honestly wasn’t surprised,” Fitzpatrick said Thursday. “I think Tom is a competitor and I think he kind of wanted to prove that he could go somewhere else and do it, you know what I’m saying? He’s a competitor. He’s one of the best — or probably the best — to do what he does. I just think he wanted to prove, not just to himself, but to the fan base and the world that he could go somewhere without the great coaching, without the great defense the Patriots had and still have the same success.”
Brady spent the first 20 years of his NFL career with the Patriots, leading the franchise to six Super Bowl titles. He established himself as the greatest quarterback of all time along the way.
However, the veteran is coming off of a rather shaky 2019 campaign in which he threw for 4,057 yards, 24 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He completed just 60.8 percent of his passes while posting a passer rating of 88.0. As a result, Brady missed the Pro Bowl for the first time since 2008, when he was knocked out for the season in Week 1 due to a torn ACL.
But now, Brady has far better weapons with the Buccaneers. So perhaps the future Hall-of-Famer will bounce back with a strong season in 2020.