Tom Brady reveals biggest regret from Patriots tenure and it's disappointing

When reflecting upon Tom Brady's career, it's hard to imagine there's anything a quarterback with the career he accomplished would have any regrets about what he did or didn't do on the field. Most young players dream about having even just a quarter of the prolific career he had in the NFL.

But now that Brady has time to sit back and unwind in his retirement, as he prepares to head into the Fox Sports booth as a commentator this upcoming season, he's seeing his career through a different lens, which has made him realize some big regrets he has.

Most fans would immediately assume the legendary quarterback wishes he had won another game or two that the Patriots lost; we all know which games those would be, so it doesn't need to be written out.

But that's just surface-level stuff regarding Brady's career, which is not what he is referring to when discussing what he wishes he could change.

Tom Brady's biggest career regret isn't what most would guess

He was a recent guest on "The Pivot" podcast and spoke openly about things he wishes he had done differently during his career, which has become more clear to him as he watches quarterbacks play in today's game.

In his response, he referenced guys like Patrick Mahomes, who have become the faces of the NFL yet are having fun as they play the game and win, something Brady wishes he had done more of.

"When I see these young players, I see like Patrick [Mahomes] out there at quarterback, running around, laughing, having fun, I'm like, 'I used to be like that!' I just got too serious, but, again, I can only look back and think, 'Okay, if I do it again, which I'll never do it again, I would be different.' But the reality is, you can't."

It's the latest revelation he has shared during his retirement. He has become a more open and honest version of himself when speaking in interviews or on his podcast. This is a nice change for Patriots fans, especially, who got a more buttoned-up version of Brady over the 20 years he spent in Foxboro.

He was a completely different player when he arrived in Tampa Bay, earning the nickname "Tampa Tom." Brady was a more relaxed, fun player and spoke more candidly, which is not what we saw in New England.

It's something he enjoyed having the opportunity to do later in his career, but he still wishes he would have relaxed a bit more and stop being as self critical as he was.

"When I got older, I would enjoy practice more than the games because I felt like I had such high expectation in the game. In practice, no one was watching. I could have a little more fun. I could be a little more lighter. Even when I look at myself later in my career, I had this face — it was a scowl — all the time. It was me just being super self-critical."

Given his success over an extended period of time, it makes sense that Brady took himself very seriously and was focused more on winning than having fun. This was the atmosphere in New England throughout the Bill Belichick/Brady era, and for good reason. It led the Patriots to nine Super Bowl appearances and six wins, which might not have happened if it had been a more relaxed vibe.

We'll never know what might have happened if we got a bit more of "Tampa Tom" in Foxboro, but because he was able to be more himself with the Bucs and still won another Super Bowl, it would've been a nice change to see that version of Brady with the Patriots.

Thankfully, there are not many "what if's?" for Patriots fans to harp on. The team was dominant for 20 years and brought home six Lombardi's. It's hard to feel regretful about that.

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