Tom Brady almost left the Patriots for the Saints, which would’ve been even weirder than reality.
After two decades of dominance, Tom Brady departing the Patriots for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was bizarre enough.
Imagine if he’d hopped the fence and left Foxborough for a team with an actual recent history of success, though? Imagine if he’d supplanted a legend at his next stop instead of sliding in seamlessly in Jameis Winston’s place?
Apparently, the wild fantasy of the New Orleans Saints going directly from Drew Brees to Brady was nearly a reality. As Brees seemed poised to jump to the broadcast booth and end his days under center, Sean Payton advocated for Brady to take the legendary gunslinger’s place. One or two seasons to change the Brees narrative forever and attempt to prove that there was a better possible fit for the Saints offense all along.
It would’ve been incredible.
Crazy to think that, had things worked out differently, Tom Brady might be with the #Saints today. Sean Payton wanted it to happen, and had several conversations about it. And with NBC offering Drew Brees a massive salary, it seemed possible. Then Brees returned to the NFL. https://t.co/O2hjUQIH06
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 13, 2020
As Ian Rapoport wrote in his exploration of the potential history-changing maneuver:
"Brady made no secret of the fact that if Brees was retiring and heading to the TV booth, Brady would like to replace him. Brady mentioned this, sources say, to a few Saints players, knowing that word would get back. New Orleans was into it, as well, with Brady seen by head coach Sean Payton as the perfect replacement for Brees. However, when Brees announced he was not done yet, the Brady-to-New-Orleans move died."
Alas, at the end of the chase, all Payton ended up with was an email inbox full of TB12 spam and another season of his established QB.
Could be worse, could be better.
Sources tell @AdamSchefter and @JeffDarlington that the Saints wanted Tom Brady if Drew Brees retired after last season https://t.co/7Ooma19rz3
— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) September 13, 2020
Oh, and in case you were wondering, yes, the Chicago Bears did slide into the proceedings, too. No, it wasn’t anywhere close to a reality.
Brady preferred the heat after 20 years of frigidity, and that didn’t advance past the early stages.
But Brady really wanted to be a part of things in New Orleans, and spent the entire early offseason dropping hints to his Saints friends. The interest was mutual. And Drew Brees had to go and ruin everything by … coming back, and also being really, really good.
Darn it.
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