NFL Free Agency Day 2 Takeaway - Thank You Tom

THANK YOU TOM

After the feeding frenzy of Day 1, the thought was there was not many more storylines to consider except the one person that everybody in the NFL universe wanted to hear from, and at 7.45am Boston time, Tom Brady the greatest Patriots player and the greatest Quarterback the game has ever seen in terms of victories and longevity posted the following statement on

And with that the rest of Day 2 was immaterial, instead it became a day of reflection and goodbyes to No.12 and perhaps after the initial shock and dumbfoundment of it all perhaps it is a time to respect a decision but also how the Patriots perhaps need to fall in line with the rest of the league.

Tom Brady is 42 when the season reconvenes in August pre-season, and as a player he has never had the payday his play naturally deserves and yet Brady ended up taking hometown discounts to stay with the franchise for the betterment of it by giving them the opportunity to purchase talent around him.

This process of 'do your job' and the blueprint has undoubtedly worked culminating in six Super Bowl triumphs, all led by the same QB and head coach with Brady going to the playoffs eighteen times in his career only missing it twice one when he was injured.  Now he is heading for one of three destinations - Tampa Bay to hook up with guru Bruce Arians and a plethora of offensive weapons at his disposal, Los Angeles Chargers which is near to home in California or even Las Vegas to join Jon Gruden and the Raiders. Brady finally has what he wanted, to be coveted to be adored and sought after by admirers something he has never experienced since being drafted in the sixth round by the Patriots in 2000.

Personally, this writer has no problem with Brady's departure while I will miss him and it will take a good few games to realise he is not the QB in Foxboro, there is a part that realises that every dog has its day and Brady who is now the other side of 40 and he has taken a step back in terms of production while you take that statement with a pinch of salt due to the lack of weapons he had following the retirement of Rob Gronkowski and the Antonio Brown furore.

Brady is the greatest player in the Patriots history, and it sticks a little in the stomach that the organisation did not try to entice him to stay offering an option significantly less than those offered by others.  The Patriots need to get in line quick with the rest of the NFL, they are good at finding nuggets through their scouting but they never have paid the stars with people leaving in their prime to get their pay day - this was evidenced the day before by Kyle Van Noy departing for the Miami Dolphins. Van Noy was paramount to the most recent Super Bowl victory over the LA Rams and following another great year he leaves like Richard Seymour did before him.

While this is a sad day for Patriots nation, the cynical nature of this football world means that no-one stays forever, cycles recycle and the world moves on - but never forget what Tom Brady did by defeating the Greatest Show on Turf, leading a dynasty (twice), having one of the greatest passing seasons in history, a few plays from a perfect season.

He was the guy who got up after a Pick 6 in the Super Bowl to lead the Patriots from a 28-3 deficit to the greatest comeback in recent memory. Brady did that and coupled with his performance v Seahawks, he defined himself as the greatest clutch quarterback - a determined competitor who never gave up

We still get to enjoy Tom Brady for perhaps two more seasons, albeit in another uniform, but thanks Tom. You are the greatest.