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More is starting to leak out regarding Tom Brady’s departure from New England and his desire to move on to another organization as a free agent - and it goes beyond Bill Belichick.
Gary Myers - New York Times best selling author of “Brady vs Manning” and former NFL columnist of the Dallas Morning News and New York Daily News - is reporting that there was a growing disconnect between the future Hall of Fame quarterback and his offensive coordinator;
Hard to present an order of why Tom Brady didn't want to return to Patriots. But one thing has been very much overlooked, according to an excellent source: His deteriorating relationship with OC Josh McDaniels. Tom was worn out by Josh after all these years. That surprised me.
— Gary Myers (@GaryMyersNY) May 11, 2020
So, in my opinion, here's why Brady is not in NE, in no order:
— Gary Myers (@GaryMyersNY) May 11, 2020
*Was worn out by Belichick. Not fun in NE
*Create competition with BB to see who could win SB without the other
*Tired of McDaniels
*Wanted more $ & more than a 1-year deal
*Talent around him diminished
*Warm weather
Prior to his signing with the Buccaneers, we had heard rumors that Tom Brady was searching for the opportunity to be more involved in the game planning and play calling with whatever franchise he happened to join. That’s a big reason Jeff Darlington of ESPN kept pointing to the Bucs as a logical and likely landing spot. Bruce Arians has a history of sitting down with his quarterbacks each week to develop the game plan, allow them to insert their favorite plays into the script, and give them some freedom to make play calls in games. We saw it with Peyton Manning, we saw it with Ben Roethlisberger, we saw it with Andrew Luck, and we saw it with Carson Palmer.
That freedom, that responsibility was something that Brady not only sought, but it was something he’s certainly earned over the course of his two decades in the league. If McDaniels was as stingy as Myers makes it sound, that certainly added fuel to the fire Brady wanted to flee from.
Say what you will about Josh McDaniels. His acceptance then panicked retreat with the Indianapolis Colts a few years ago was - in my opinion - a cowardly act. That doesn’t change his abilities as an offensive coordinator and it doesn’t take away from the successes he’s had. However, a power struggle between the offensive coordinator and quarterback - especially one with the pedigree that Brady has - is a recipe for disaster and there aren’t too many people in this league that can deal with it for very long.
On the flip side, Tom Brady himself came out and refuted the report on Instagram, stating that reporters should be more responsible and he and McDaniels are “brothers for life” -
Tom Brady denies Gary Myers’ report that friction with Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels led to his departure from New England. This is from Brady’s Instagram: pic.twitter.com/Nz2sXLXhB3
— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) May 12, 2020
Whatever the case is with Tom Brady and Josh McDaniels, the Bucs should just be thankful that things went the way they did, allowing Brady to land in Tampa Bay.