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Tom Brady's Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost in last year's Divisional Round of the NFL playoffs by a narrow margin, 30-27, to the eventual champion Los Angeles Rams. During that game, the Buccaneers mounted a massive comeback after being down 27-3 in the third quarter.
With so much left in the tank and losing a winnable playoff game, the writing was on the wall for the Bucs to come back stronger than ever in 2022. The offseason (then) hit, and the three-time NFL MVP retired.
Thankfully for fans, the retirement only lasted a total of 41 days. Brady recently spoke to Mike DeStefano of Complex and spoke about how his wife, supermodel Gisele Bundchen, was the driving force behind his return, saying the following:
“At that point, I decided to talk with my family, and I said, ‘I think I want to do this one more time, if you guys will support that.’ And my wife was so supportive of it, and she said, ‘Look, I want you to be happy. I want you to enjoy it and go out there and win.’ Ultimately, that’s why I came back (to win). There’s only one reason for me to play at this point in my career, and that’s to win.” - Tom Brady
Now that the seven-time Super Bowl champion has returned, it's business as usual for a squad that anticipates being in the hunt for the franchise's third Lombardi Trophy.
Will Tom Brady and the Buccaneers return to the Super Bowl after a one-year hiatus?
Tom Brady's return to the team spearheaded the Buccaneers' latest efforts to re-tool and re-claim their spot at the top of the mountain. In 2021, their spot was vacated and filled by Matthew Stafford and the Los Angeles Rams.
In the offseason, the next order of business was to re-sign key players at key positions. The team lost guard Ali Marpet to retirement and guard Alex Cappa to the Cincinnati Bengals.
Since their quarterback will be 45 years of age when the season begins, it was imperative for the Bucs to address the offensive line, which they did by trading for former New England Patriots guard Shaq Mason.
The Buccaneers also made it a point to re-sign starting running back Leonard Fournette to a three-year, $21 million deal. The front office, then, secured Pro Bowl receiver Chris Godwin by re-signing him to a three-year, $60 million deal.
The team lost head coach Bruce Arians, but he is only upstairs in the front office. Former Bucs defensive coordinator Todd Bowles is now the head coach. He has been with the organization since 2019 and has established a good rapport with the team.
The time is now, and the clock is ticking for Tom Brady to, perhaps, capture his last Super Bowl to make it number eight.
