Tom Brady officially retires for the second time, just months after his divorce

This time last year, Tom Brady announced his retirement. It was a long time coming for the then-44-year-old. Tributes poured in, people were happy for him and it seemed like Tom was finally going to spend more time with his family. Six weeks later, he un-retired and announced that he would play one more year – and maybe more! – with Tampa Bay. Soon after, Gisele Bundchen began to extract herself from the marriage, and they finalized their divorce in the early fall of 2022. The Bucs 22-23 season was awful and Tom looked foolish and old. Apparently, he’s a free agent now and he was actively looking for another season. I don’t know if no NFL team would hire him or if he suddenly realized that he can’t keep playing football forever, but now Tom claims he’s retiring again.

Tom Brady says he is retiring “for good” from football, ending a storied 23-year NFL career during which the star quarterback won seven Super Bowls and set numerous records. Brady announced his decision Wednesday on social media, saying he “wouldn’t change a thing” about his career.

Brady, 45, also announced he was retiring last year on Feb. 1, 2022, before changing his mind 40 days later and returning to play this past season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“I know the process was a pretty big deal last time, so when I woke up this morning, I figured I’d just press record and let you guys know first,” Brady said in a video on Twitter. “I won’t be longwinded. You only get one super emotional retirement essay, and I used mine up last year, so really thank you guys so much to every single one of you for supporting me.”

Brady informed the Buccaneers of his decision at 6 a.m. ET on Wednesday morning, according to ESPN’s Jeff Darlington.

[From ESPN]

He looks foolish. He looks like he threw away a beautiful and loving wife and a solid marriage to pursue this pipe dream for one more season. Anyway, I hope Gisele is having a blessed day.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid.

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88 Responses to “Tom Brady officially retires for the second time, just months after his divorce”

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  1. Kiera says:

    In Hermione Grangers voice..what an idiot

  2. Lolo86lf says:

    He looks so gaunt! He already lost his marriage so he can do whatever he wants, he always did anyway so whatever.

    • Dutch says:

      He’s got a $375 million contract to be a broadcaster waiting on him. Maybe he’s trying to be TV skinny

  3. Noki says:

    Been reading comments on maybe the unretiring was a sneaky way to get out of the marriage. Whatever, I hope it was worth it.

    • SophieJara says:

      Idk, didn’t look like a carefully planned exit to me. I think that narrative is being shopped around because he is incapable of admitting mistakes, regret, or humility. At least towards women. He needs a counter point on his wife being rightly tired of his s***.

      • HelloDolly! says:

        LOVE THIS. I work with men that will do anything but admit fault. It seems pathological. Blame the department, blame the institution, blame everyone else but themselves. You can imagine how difficult they are to work with—loathsome is the word that comes to mind, hahaha.

      • Fabiola says:

        He had to prove to himself that he had one more year. He did it and now it won’t be on his mind the what if I played just one more year. Now he can move on with the rest of his life. He’ll do broadcasting or buy a team and remarry. Men are able to easily jump back.

      • ML says:

        I totally agree, SophieJara. If he wanted a divorce, the best thing he could have done was gently tell Gisele their marriage wasn’t working. Now he wants us to believe that essentially going back on his promise to retire, keep quiet at the beginning of the 2022 season, and complaining in October that Gisele was being aggressive and he didn’t want the divorce…uh, okay. That sounds sneaky and devious. I don’t think Tom is all that smart and Gisele is hopefully doing much better.

    • Dutch says:

      Other than being a tool personally, I think the last straw was signing the contract to be a broadcaster. I think Gisele believed that Tom would stop working when he retired from football rather than starting a second career that requires the same amount of time commitment and travel as the previous one.

      • teecee says:

        He had the broadcasting deal set up a while before all this happened, so that doesn’t make sense. And there’s no way doing play-by-play is as time consuming as being an active player – more importantly, it’s not nearly as dangerous. Gisele has alluded to the damage the game had done to Tom’s body and (possibly) his brain. IMO that’s what this was all about.

      • Dutch says:

        Before he signed the broadcasting deal, he tried to maneuver his way into Miami where he would end up getting an ownership stake in the Dolphins, which one would assume Gisele would have been more amenable to because he’d be based in Miami and being a minority owner of a team is more of a 9-5 gig that requires less travel than being a TV analyst.

    • Jessica says:

      That sounds like his way of trying to save face, well I wanted to leave her anyway but she was crazy so…not buying it lol. He made a fool of himself this last year but he’ll bounce back no problem or course, and have a young woman by his side in no time.

      • Robert Phillips says:

        Yeah but I doubt any new woman is going to do all the things Giselle did for him so he could pursue his career. Any new woman is going to be a gold digger and not make a home for him. I know he can afford people to cook and clean. But they don’t make it a home. Plus his kids are going to resent him. So he’s going to be old and alone. All because of his ego.

      • mimi says:

        like his hero Trump, he’s becoming a has been.

  4. Gobo says:

    Oh dear. He gambled (and lost) his marriage for this, only to find it turned to ashes in his mouth. What a folly.

    • BothSidesNow says:

      So now TB is sucking it up to save face again. TB’s interview, to which they asked his where he was headed to next, to which he responded with anger will never leave me. I think that TB was furious that no one was pounding down his door with lucrative deals.

      Again, TB’s ego is the driving force behind his decisions, and not what was best for his family nor giving it a second thought that he had promised GB.

  5. ThatsNotOkay says:

    Aw, poor, rich tax dodger. Whoever pointed out that he and Gisele went and hid their assets when FTX crypto was about to collapse and then divorced to shield their assets some more was onto something. Tom Brady is the Jay Leno of mediocre men.

  6. square_bologna says:

    Hope that last season was worth it. 🙄

    • Liz Version 700 says:

      N kidding. He didn’t just loose his family, he added compounded damage to his already stressed brain. For a year of being a second rate quarterback.

  7. Polo says:

    He says he doesn’t regret coming back so maybe the marriage was already over.
    Just seems sad he threw it away just to retire a year later. Smh

    • SarahCS says:

      The un-retiring was clearly a tipping point but clearly things weren’t great already and Giselle was done doing all the heavy lifting for the family. I struggle to believe he’s suddenly have become a super engaged parent and split the load 50/50 or even take up more on the domestic side so she could work more again.

  8. Dee says:

    More time for that $1 million dollar yacht the taxpayers bought him with Covid PPE loans. Don’t let that door hit you on the way out, Tom.

    • BothSidesNow says:

      Yup, the only advantage of being a loyal Drumpf ass kisser was the free millions of dollars he shelled out to his corporate buddies. They should have forced every single person and corporation to pay back every cent with 20% interest and be charged criminally, as they ALL knowingly stole from the government.

  9. SophieJara says:

    He’s such a d***. And I don’t just say that as a New Yorker. “No Regrets”. Like all season he kept needing to give interviews saying he “wasn’t a quitter” and “finished what he started”. Except commitments to your family? Super on board with quitting those. I hope no matter how many Instagram models he flies out he can never escape his loneliness and regret.

    • Ann says:

      Agreed. The man is a selfish ahole to his core. I don’t really care that he squandered his marriage but it does bother me a lot that he chose football over his whole family including his children. He could have died this past season and that is not hyperbole. He also could have had a serious injury that would further what I feel is obvious brain damage. I know that is true of all football players and it’s honestly just a heartbreaking aspect of contact sports, but for Fs sake know when enough is enough. Brady is too stupid and selfish to do the right thing.

    • Jais says:

      After living in ny for 15 years, although sadly not anymore, I absolutely learned to despise Brady lol. Look, he wanted to keep playing football so okay fine. But it was all just so bungled. He retired and there were so many shows going on about his epicness and goatness and then he unretired and had a terrible season. The ignominy!

  10. Eurydice says:

    I can’t jump on the “trash Brady” bandwagon. Football has been his life ever since he was a little kid. It’s hard enough to find a new identity when retiring from a regular job, I can’t imagine what it’s like when you’ve been at the top of your profession forso many years. I wish both him and Giselle happiness in whatever future path they choose to take.

    • Lady Baden-Baden says:

      ❤️

    • FHMom says:

      I like the way he announced this. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and say he was only talking about football when he says he has no regrets. I, too, wish him and his family happiness.

    • AnitaZ says:

      Exactly, I hate him because I’m a Bills fan, but I have to give respect where respect is do, that man was good at football and I fully believe he only came back because his retirement wasn’t announced by him on his terms. Now he said it first and can finally retire.

    • Josephine says:

      One thing he did remarkably well — he kept his salary lower than it could have been so he could surround himself with the best talent possible. He also figured out how to get the best out of those he worked with. He listened and learned like no one else and he mostly kept his mouth shut when it came to the game and his own talent. It is what set him apart from someone like Aaron Rodgers who always had a huge chip on his shoulder and only looked out for himself. Tom Brady was a very low draft pick and I think that was probably in his favor in the end.

    • Maida says:

      Well said, Eurydice. I have no love for Brady as a person but I do sympathize with anyone who has built their lives around a passion that is then out of reach. I always wonder about young Olympians who excel at figure skating or gymnastics, particularly, and have to bow out of the sport so early in life because it’s so physically punishing.

    • J says:

      This is refreshing to see. Thank you for reminding us to have compassion.

    • Dutch says:

      But his post-career path as a football broadcaster was set early last year. It’s not like he’s a lost soul in the wilderness. His life, routine and compensation really aren’t going to change much.

      • Twin Falls says:

        I’m not a Brady fan but watching football versus playing in the NFL…night and day.

      • Dutch says:

        “Watching football” oversimplifies it. Cris Collinsworth of NBC famously studies film 8-10 hours a day during the season for his analyst job. Brady did a ton of film study as a player. Crews travel on Thursday or Friday ahead of a Sunday game and have meetings and such in the days ahead of the game. Brady spent a lot of time away from home due to travel as a player. He’s vain and part of his personal brand is health and fitness so he’s going to continue to work out to keep from looking doughy on TV and push his supplements. Again he worked out as a player.
        With preseason and the playoffs that will eat up as much as 25 weeks a year. And that’s before FOX Sports sends him to other stuff so they get their $37.5 million a year’s worth.

        Is he going to have the same day-to-day in a lockerroom? No. Will it scratch his competitive itch in the same way? Probably not. Will his time be occupied just as much as it was when he was a player? Absolutely.

      • Eurydice says:

        His life will change because his goals will change. That doesn’t mean he won’t find satisfaction doing something else, just that there’s nothing else like being a top quarterback who’s won 7 Super Bowls.

    • Becks1 says:

      @Eurydice, I’m just laughing because aren’t you from the Boston area? Of course you can’t trash Brady LOLOL.

      • Eurydice says:

        Oh, some of the greatest Brady-haters are in Boston. For some reason, they think he’s a traitor for leaving the Patriots after 20 years and 6 Super Bowl wins. Around here it’s almost better to admit you’re a Satan worshipper than to say anything remotely positive about Brady.

  11. Abby says:

    I just keep wondering if he went back on his word to keep playing, so she divorced him, or if the divorce was already happening so he said “F it I’m gonna do what I want and play some more football.”

    Either way, I’m sure he didn’t intend this year to go this way.

    • FHMom says:

      The divorce was finalized so quickly I would guess it was already being quietly worked out.

      • Okay says:

        Yes, I also feel it was already over and he is just not combating whatever narrative Giselle put out there. If he has I haven’t heard it.

    • Holz says:

      I agree with this!!!!

    • Becks1 says:

      I think the marriage was on the rocks, I think he might have said he would retire from football as an attempt to save it, and then either un-retired if he realized the divorce was inevitable or just un-retired because Tom Brady is going to do what Tom Brady wants to do.

  12. Chaine says:

    I’ll believe it when next season goes by without him again unretiring

  13. Chantal says:

    He could have retired on a high note as the GOAT. He blew up his marriage due to vanity and tunnel vision. While his record breaking career remains unparalleled, there is now a footnote re the tragedy of his final season along with the divorce. Hopefully he’ll devote more time to his kids.

  14. Anne says:

    One of the most interesting things about the gossip the last year is how uninteresting it was. He clearly didn’t want to fight for his marriage, the actual divorce was quick and quiet, and they both seem to have moved on. I believe he has no regrets and I think he’s okay with the life he designed for himself.

  15. Sue E Generis says:

    I kind of disagree that he gave up a stable marriage/family life. He strikes me as an extremely selfish and self-important man. Someone whose needs don’t just come first but are the only needs that are considered all the time. That could never result in a happy, thriving marriage/family. Not to mention he’s a cheater in more ways than one.

    I think the marriage lasted as long as it did because of football. It was a convenient excuse for a lot of things and when it went away, it immediately became obvious that it wasn’t football causing problems, it was him.

    I think the marriage was limping along on its last legs and football was carrying the blame for everything so Giselle hung in there thinking once football was gone, the marriage would be repaired. As soon as she realized football wasn’t to blame, she bounced.

    • Fabiola says:

      If he really want to to save his marriage he would have. Same with Giselle but they didn’t want to which is fine. Sometimes marriages run their course and people realize they are not meant to be together. They are both still young and rich. They can find love again if they want to.

  16. girl_ninja says:

    He really does look foolish and it’s sad because it really does look like he took his family for granted all to chase records when he was already great. I hope that he learns if only to be a great father to his children and help co-parent to with Gisele and Bridgette.

  17. art maven says:

    People make mistakes and they have their path. These people have a lot to live for. I hope their whole family finds peace and reconciliation.

  18. HeatherC says:

    He’s a GOAT for football but the rest of his life seems……empty. Sure he has a broadcasting job waiting for him that might pay MORE than his playing years and he still has endorsements but outside of football he has….golf?

    On the plus side, his kids are probably used to him being a part time dad so it won’t interrupt their lives.

    And on the petty Bills fan side….I love that his unfinished business (Superbowl) still didn’t happen. Seeing their elimination brought a shard of comfort to my ever broken Bills heart when it comes to post season.

    • Dee says:

      He has his own wellness company. Trump made sure his company got $1 million in PPE loans. I don’t have an ounce of sympathy for him.

      • HeatherC says:

        Actual quote from his book to hype up his products:
        “These days, even if I get an adequate amount of sun, I won’t get a sunburn, which I credit to the amount of water I drink” (2017)

        If he didn’t have his handlers I don’t think he could function in a quiet room.

        CTE or was he always this idiotic?

  19. Kateee says:

    Is it possible Giselle was already planning to leave him but didn’t say so until he retired, and he unretired because of that? Because she was very over it the entire time. Or that, knowing she was leaving him, he played an extra year so he would not have to split the proceeds of his fancy broadcasting deal in the settlement? Just trying to find some spice in this bowl of oatmeal.

    • Michael says:

      While I agree he probably unretired after the divorce was already in the works I do not think Giselle was interested in his money since she has more than he does. They are both filthy rich. I would believe she may be protecting herself from the FTX lawsuits though. But I also think those lawsuits will not be successful.

    • Dutch says:

      There was some scuttlebutt when the Miami Dolphins were hit with tampering penalties by the NFL because the Dolphins had worked out a deal with Brady to be their quarterback and be sold an ownership stake in the franchise while he was under contract with another team. Speculation was Gisele was okay with that arrangement, but when it blew up and Tom signed a deal to start a second career that was just as time consuming as being a football player and that was the last straw because Gisele wanted to resume her career and Tom being on the road a lot for his future broadcasting job made that impossible.

  20. Paige Liberato says:

    There are rumors the divorce is partially based on football, but was also a way for Giselle to shield her assets from the FTX bankruptcy after Tom invested heavily. Does anyone know how much Tom might be financially hit from that?

    • Dutch says:

      Tom signed a 10-year $375 million contract to be a broadcaster post playing career. He’ll limp by regardless of any crypto related losses.

  21. TheOriginalMia says:

    Let’s see if this retirement sticks. I kinda doubt it will. Right now, he’s licking his wounds. And…the deal with Miami fell through, so who knows what his real motivation is for retiring.

  22. tamsin says:

    I’m wondering if there is a price to be paid when a person devotes himself to becoming “the greatest” in a sport. Does it prevent development in becoming a whole human being? Brady reminds me a bit of Tiger Woods. He became “great” so young that his emotional growth was stunted, and he didn’t know how to be anything except a great golfer. How much focus and dedication to oneself and the sport is required to become “the greatest?” How “selfish” do you have to be?

  23. Louise177 says:

    To be honest I doubt Gisele left because Tom unretired. Most likely it was the last nail in the coffin. Maybe they were already discussing divorce and that’s why he decided on another season. Anyway Tom really ruined his retirement. The first time he was on top (even though he didn’t win the Superbowl and well respected. Now he’s a joke.

  24. DouchesOfCambridge says:

    Loosing his supporting family for a few more months of catching a ball and running to a line. Ok. I bet he’s gonna go after Gisele for another chance.

  25. Michael says:

    I do not believe his unretirement caused his divorce. I believe his divorce was happening already and he unretired to avoid dealing with his personal stuff. No way they could have settled all that money and property that quickly if it was not already in the works. Anyway he is retired now and can spend some time getting to know the kids he ignored during football season Hopefully he takes advantage of it while he can

  26. HeyKay says:

    It is easy to look back, for everyone. I’m not going to kick him again.

    I do wish he would have retired right after The Superbowl win, huge victory.
    The most I ever liked him was when he was slightly drunk (for him) had his team mates holding onto him, he was giggly and smiling, and tossed a beautiful spiral with the SP trophy from one fan filled boat to another. 🙂 Might have been the one time he actually relaxed in his life.

    He is the GOAT NFL QB, HoF certainly.
    As far as his personal life goes, I wish him good luck.
    I’m restraining from putting more negativity out into the world.

  27. ElleE says:

    Been saying this here for years: something happened to this man (and maybe to the team, because that was when they lost control of the story of dead bodies that were piling up around that organization) about 17 years ago because he has been robotic and unhuman like since that time.

    Putting our human compassion, love for our families and struggle between work and life balance on to this person doesn’t work because he’s not “like us” anymore.

    He and Giselle were real people. They had a real marriage-his eyes then went dead and hers didn’t. She gamely kept going but we will never know what went down.

    More likely scenario;
    The plan may have been that she gets to officially walk when he retired, so she thought she was free. Then TB realizes he can no longer function in society the way he did when he was 22 (golf is his favorite game, not football- ask him) and runs back to The Firm/Sim-Life he sold his soul for, and Giselle is like “Imma walk anyway. Ciao Ciao!!!”

  28. K8erade says:

    I’ll say something nice today even though I don’t like him: Tom Brady did a lot of good for the NFL and stood his ground on important issues for players such as head health.

  29. HeyKay says:

    You all might be correct in that the divorce was under way and he decided might as well play, keep my head in the game as a distraction.
    I didn’t realize the divorce was only 3 months ago.

  30. Flower says:

    Unpopular opinion but I think he wanted to get divorced and going back to football was just his way of creating space and friction between them so that things could completely fall apart.

    If you love and want to stay with your spouse you compromise and work these situations out, whichever way the chips fall, especially given his age and stage in his career.

    I think they both wanted out and this is the story being put out there but really I suspect they’d been separated for a while.

  31. Normades says:

    Mark my words he will remarry a younger woman and be the “family man” he wasn’t the first 2 times around.

    • Whatnow says:

      I totally agree with your sentiment.

      Always feel bad for the previous partners of someone like Brady or Affleck who get the shaft and then have to watch the ‘new and improved’ version move on with someone new.

      They have to listen to how in love and perfect the new couple are for each other.

      Like of course you are all lovey dovey. He worked out his demons on my watch and you get to reap the rewards.

      It truly is ‘all in the timing’

  32. HeyKay says:

    TB and G were on close to equal grounds IMO.
    He is a successful NFL QB + she is a successful Supermodel. Yes, her $$ is more.

    Tom is now a single, former QB, worth Millions, and at 45 he is a perfect target for every beautiful, younger, gold digging female in the US.
    And believe me, they are coming for him, lining up to take their shot at $$ and attention.
    TB has a huge broadcasting deal signed. I see him either being a workaholic or remarried to a 26 y/o with a new family of kids on the way. Wash, rinse, repeat.

    Take a look at former QB, Terry Bradshaw, been married 3 or 4x, each wife much younger, with several much younger short term relationships also. Bradshaw is still making $$ on Fox Football well into his ’70’s, no end in sight. He will always have a younger woman in his life.

    I’m in Minnesota. The MN Vikings have gotten to 4 SBs, choked and lost every.single.one. We get into or close to the playoffs and still in the history of the franchise, No SB win. Season tickets are always sold out. To a team that can not win a SB!
    I swear, if we got TB and he got us a SB win he would be covered in glory for the rest of his life, he would have people sleeping in the street in front of his house, hoping to see the great TB.
    I know a lot of NFL fans who are unhinged in their adoration of NFL players, really over the top.

    TB will continue to be big news for 1-2 years in broadcasting, and then as always the young guns will move in to become the new Heros.
    Btw, Aaron Rogers is still an a**hat. I wish he would have retired 2 years ago. (sorry for the rant)

    • Julia K says:

      Aaron Rodgers led the Green Bay Packers to a Super Bowl win In 2010. He gets paid to play football, not win popularity contests . He may be an a..hat but he gets the job done.

  33. Hehe says:

    I think Gisele can talk about the divorce not in destroying way of some women but in a way of her side closures this that type. She is entitled that much After all she was a wife of many years and 1st wife. Stories are women thing mot? :))

  34. Bread and Circuses says:

    Someone suggested he lost a ton of money on bitcoin, and that honestly seems like a good explanation for what happened: He torched a bunch of their money, went back to work to try to stay liquid, and his wife divorced his butt both in outrage over what he did and to protect her own finances.

  35. shanaynay says:

    I call BS. He keeps pulling the same crap. I don’t think anybody is stupid enough to believe him.

  36. Mar says:

    I get the impression that this marriage was done a long time ago. Maybe it was just a mismatch? Either way, Tom seems fine with being single

  37. j.ferber says:

    He’s absolutely too stupid to do this, but I think he should leave the country and go to India, like Will Smith did after his crisis, and try to re-set and heal. I really like the idea of this and would love to have the money to do so myself. Maybe he would see things differently and possibly grow enough to see that football is not the be-all and end-all of life. Find a whole new direction? But who am I kidding?