Drew Brees will return to the New Orleans Saints for the 2020 season, but it remains to be seen where Tom Brady will play.
But if the Raiders actually offer Brady $60 million, it might not be in New England.
“I think he wants a market that feels important in some way,” Damon Amendolara said on The DA Show. “Vegas feels important because it’s Vegas. Because it’s the show. Because the Raiders are going there to open up the stadium and start a brand new era there. And the Chargers feel important because it’s L.A. Not the Chargers, but the city feels important when you’re there. I think those are the only places Brady’s leaving his coziness of the Patriots.”
Brady, a sixth-round pick in 2000, has spent his entire career in New England. If the Patriots let him walk, their next quarterback could be . . . Jarrett Stidham?
“I don’t know if the Patriots think that Jarret Stidham is the guy,” Amendolara said. “I highly doubt that. I don’t know if they have a game plan in free agency where they have somebody already targeted. Maybe they do. They’re really, really smart like this. They have thought five steps ahead.
“But if you were asking me today, gun to my head, what do I think – I don’t think Tom Brady is a Patriot next year,” Amendolara continued. “I don’t. I think he’s going to feel the love somewhere else way more than he’s going to get in New England – and he’s going to like that. And he’s going to take that – and I don’t blame him.”
But would Brady actually leave New England to go to a franchise that has missed the playoffs in 16 of the last 17 seasons?
Two words: Money talks.
“People say, ‘Well, he doesn’t need the money,’” Amendolara scoffed. “Look, you could always use $60 million bucks. And this idea that he shouldn’t tarnish his legacy, come on. Emmitt Smith is still the all-time leading rusher. Johnny Unitas is still one of the greats of all time. Nobody remembers Joe Namath as a Ram. Nobody thinks of Jerry Rice as a Seahawk. It’s a moment in time [when] you get a lot of money and get rewarded for what you used to do. I don’t blame those guys for that at all. Yes, he doesn’t need the money, but for $60 million, that’s a lot of cash. I wouldn’t blame him one bit if he took that cash.”