BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — With the 2020 NFL League Year and free agency rapidly approaching, we've learned that one team is set to go "all in" on trying to court Tom Brady on the open market.
Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reported on Wednesday that the Buccaneers will be on Tom Brady's agent Don Yee's call waiting as soon as the league's legal tampering period begins at noon Monday March 16th, with Head Coach Bruce Arians leading the charge.
In his column, Stroud notes how the Bucs haven't been relevant since 2002 (when they last won the Super Bowl), and nothing would put a jolt in team interest and ability like adding six-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady to the roster. He writes:
The Bucs are going all in on Tom Brady. It’s true. The franchise that has not reached the postseason in 12 years will do almost anything to land the quarterback who has been to the playoffs for 11 straight seasons and won six Super Bowls. If we reach the legal free-agent tampering period Monday at noon and Brady is behind Door No. 2, Bruce Arians and the Glazer family will try to kick that sucker down for Touchdown Tommy. TB12 for TB’20. This is not hype. It’s hope. This is fact, not fantasy. This is the plan. This is the Bucs’ play.
Now, we've mentioned the Bucs here on Brady Watch a few times, from Ben Volin of the Boston Globe saying that they are a "dark horse" in the Brady Sweepstakes, to Peter King of NBC Sports saying they could be a "Sleeping Giant". But this is the first time we've heard it from a respected reporter who works in Tampa Bay lay out that this is the team's Plan A in free agency.
While there's no doubt now Tampa will make a huge pitch to Brady, they have tons of cap space, already have great skill position players, and appear to be ready to let the quarterback dictate the personnel choices around him and the offensive scheme. The question remains: will that be enough to convince a 43 year-old Brady to sign with a franchise that has one winning season(2016) in the past decade?
Elsewhere, with exactly one week until free agency, updated odds of where Brady will sign still favor him staying put in New England(-150) but you could make some serious money if you buy in on these Tampa Bay rumblings.
This non-stop speculation should finally be resolved in a week.
Free Agency begins March 18th at 4pm.
WBZ NewsRadio's Dan Watkins (@DanWatkinsRadio) reports:
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