"Arians is foolishly rattling the cage on Tom Brady" - Mike Florio roasts Buccaneers HC for his treatment of the GOAT
Bruce Arians is making the media rounds as the NFL combine takes place this week. Of course, what will happen with Tom Brady remains a hot topic of conversation for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach.
One odd comment was how the coach mentioned it would be "bad business" to trade Brady if he decided to unretire and ask to play elsewhere. NBC Sports' Mike Florio is having a hard time understanding why the coach is treating the legendary player this way.
Bruce Arians’ price is high to trade Tom Brady if he comes out of retirement 😬 https://t.co/8ZbKUGQXzq
One key point he brought up is that the decision is ultimately not up to the coach. Would ownership actually say no to Brady's request?
"Bruce Arians just is wrong a lot when it comes to Tom Brady. He said he'd be shocked if Brady retired, and Brady retired. Now he'll be shocked if he retires, and he's going to unretire and huff and puff, and he's not going to play for another team. We're not going to let that happen. It's not his call, first of all. Second of all, he's only under contract because he did a deal last year to reduce his cap number. It's not like he got some big giant pot of money to do an extra year. They did it for cap purposes. So if he goes to the Glazers, if he goes to Jason Licht, and he says this is how it's going to be. Are you going to say no to Tom Brady?
Florio also notes how the quarterback is only under contract because he helped the team stay under the cap by agreeing to have some money moved around.
Mike Florio believes Bruce Arians could goad Tom Brady into returning
One fascinating take from Florio is that he thinks the way Arians is talking about Brady could convince the GOAT to return and stick it to his former head coach.
"I was saying earlier today it's just kind of a weird vibe that Bruce Arians is even treating Brady verbally, like any other player in the history of football would be treated. Brady has transcended that kind of misguided, tough talk. Brady gets what he wants. And if he wants out, he's getting out. And I just think that Arians is foolishly rattling the cage on Brady, and maybe setting the stage to get Brady even more convinced to come back and show Bruce Arians and everyone else that what he did was retired not from football, but he retired from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers."
The final line there is the most powerful. Florio insinuates Brady simply "retired from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers." That could mean rumors of angst between the coach and the quarterback did ultimately drive the quarterback away.
It is a bit odd to see Arians talking about Brady like he is just another player. Yet that is the attitude fans have come to expect from the hard-nosed head coach, so it is not a surprise. Now fans will eagerly await to see what Brady does, and if he truly, in fact, wants to stick it to yet another former coach.
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