Tom Brady open to playing beyond 45 as he prepares for 10th Super Bowl
Tom Brady is getting ready for his 10th Super Bowl appearance and there may be a few more to come, with the quarterback saying he is open to playing beyond the age of 45.
The 43-year-old will lead the Tampa Bay Buccaneers against the Kansas City Chiefs in Sunday’s Super Bowl, and has spoken in the past of wanting to play until he is 45. On Monday, he said he is open to extending his career beyond that age.
“Definitely. I’d definitely consider that,” Brady said. “It’s a physical sport. Just the perspective I have on that is you never know when that moment is. Just because it’s a contact sport. There’s a lot of training that goes into it. And it has to be 100% commitment from myself to keep doing it.”
Brady has shown few signs of slowing down since leaving the New England Patriots after 20 years for the Buccaneers last off-season. His 4,633 passing yards during the regular season was the fifth-highest total of his career.
“I could never have imagined it would be like this. I don’t think anybody could have,” Brady said. “[I’ve] tried to go play my ass off every week. I’m still trying to do it. This work for me has never been about – I would have thought that success is passing yards or touchdowns or Super Bowls – it was always maximizing my potential, being the best I could be.”
Brady was famously passed over several times by every NFL team before the Patriots took him with the 199th overall pick of the 2000 draft. On Monday, Brady said even he is sometimes surprised at his career, which has seen him win six Super Bowl titles.
“When I showed up as a freshman in high school, I didn’t know how to put pads in my pants,” said Brady. I was just hoping to play high school football because I wanted to be like Joe Montana and Steve Young. And then when I got a chance in college, I just wanted to play at Michigan. When I got drafted by the Patriots, I just wanted to play, I just wanted to start. It’s just been a series of steps like that of trying to be a little better every year, trying to learn a little more every year, trying to grow and evolve in different areas.
“My life has taken certainly a lot of different directions. I’m obviously older now. I’ve got a family. A lot of incredible blessings in my life. Fast forward 21 years, sitting in Tampa and trying to win a Super Bowl in our own home stadium would be pretty sweet.”
Brady’s commitment to his health is legendary, and he has claimed that factors such as bioceramic sleepwear and drinking large amounts of water have helped extend his career. On Monday, he said his body will tell him when it is time to quit.
“I think I’ll know when it’s time,” Brady said. “I don’t know when that time will come. But I think I’ll know. And I’ll understand that I gave everything I could to give to this game. You put a lot into it. I don’t think I could ever go at this game half-ass. I’ve gotta put everything into it. When I put it all out there, [when] I feel like I can’t do it anymore, I don’t feel like I can commit to the team in the way that the team needs me then I think that’s when it’s probably time to walk away.”