“I’m calling Tom Brady”: Shannon Sharpe wants Jets to put $25,000,000 on the table for 7x Super Bowl champ
Tom Brady officially announced his retirement during the 2023 offseason after more than two decades of dominance in the NFL. While he has given no legitimate implications that he has been considering making a return to the football field, a recent opportunity may have potentially presented itself.
Just a few plays into the New York Jets' Week 1 game of the 2023 NFL season, Aaron Rodgers reportedly suffered an Achilles injury. He is rumored to be shut down for the remainder of the season before it ever really got started. The Jets went all-in to acquire the superstar quarterback during the offseason, theoretically making them Super Bowl contenders.
In order to salvage their 2023 season, the Jets must immediately come up with some kind of gameplan to replace Aaron Rodgers. Shannon Sharpe mentioned Tom Brady as an ideal replacement, and possibly even an upgrade, during a recent First Take episode.
Sharpe said:
"I'm calling Tom Brady. Tom, seriously. I am going to put a call into Tom Brady. All these other guys, I understand that Wentz is available and Nick Foles is available, and maybe you can get Matt Ryan to come up out of the booth for CBS. I'm calling Tom. 'Tom, seriously, we got $25 million on the table for you, can you come give us something?' "
Brady last played football during the 2022 season, so he's less than one year removed from the game. He spent three years with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, making the NFL Playoffs each season. The 46-year-old also won a Super Bowl ring in his first year with his new team. He proved he can quickly adapt to a new team, so if the Jets can convince him to come out of retirement, their quest for a ring could still be alive.
Tom Brady's ownership stake complicates a potential NFL return
Among the many various business ventures that Tom Brady has been involved with since announcing his retirement is NFL ownership. He purchased a minority stake in the Las Vegas Raiders during the 2023 NFL offseason. This complicates his potential return to the football field, if he is in fact possibly debating coming out of retirement.
If the New York Jets were to contact him about his interest in replacing Aaron Rodgers for the 2023 NFL season, he couldn't do so as an active owner of a different team, as it would be a conflict of interest. He would have to either outright sell his share of the Raiders, or make other arrangements, and it's unclear if he would even be willing to do that.