Unknown to many football fans, a lot of things apparently went into Tom Brady's decision to find a new home heading into the upcoming season. The New Orleans Saints reportedly made a run at securing the services of the six-time Super Bowl Champion after talks of Drew Brees' impending retirement emerged.

The Saints figured that a Hall of Fame quarterback in Brady would be the perfect replacement for an accomplished franchise playmaker like Brees. Despite the mutual interest between the two parties, talks eventually failed to come to fruition. The Saints' QB1 announced that he has no plans of retiring just yet and was set to return for his 20th campaign in 2020.

Despite the ongoing discussions, NBC Sports Boston reported that the New England Patriots wouldn't file tampering charges if a team spoke with Brady before his contract was up. The Chicago Bears were also an under-the-radar suitor for Brady who has yet to make a decision at the time. The team eventually went with veteran Nick Foles who turned out to be a backup to fourth-year quarterback Mitchell Trubisky instead.

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During the offseason, both the Los Angeles Chargers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers threw their hats and entered the Brady sweepstakes. The three-time NFL MVP eventually picked Tampa Bay and signed a two-year contract worth $50 million base value with a max value of $59 million.

Those what-ifs would have to be set aside today as Tom Brady and the rest of the Buccaneers are slated to tussle against their division rival New Orleans Saints in hopes of making an opening game statement for the 2020 season.