Former Patriots teammate Antonio Brown, the supremely talented yet troubled wideout, said Friday that after six months out of the NFL, he wants back in and his ideal destination is “preferably with Tom.”
“I’d be really grateful if I had the opportunity to play in Tampa Bay, to play anywhere,” Brown said on 102.5 The Bone’s Mike Calta Show. “Obviously to play with Tom Brady would be an extreme honor. You know his quality of leadership. You know, his [passion], the want to win. Anytime you can be around a guy like that, man, it’s an extreme honor. You know you’re going to have opportunity to do something exciting.”
“It’s not about me. It’s about him,” Brown said. “I’m just excited for him and his new team, new opportunity, to just see how well he can do. I know his leadership, his on-the-field play is second to none. So it’s all about Tom, man. I’m grateful for him. We both have our own situations. I’m just trying to do everything I can do to get stuff out the way, so I can get back to the field. I’m just excited for TB. He’s got a great opportunity. He’s one of my close friends.”
While Brown was in New England, Brady invited him to live with him until he got acclimated. Brown only lasted one game with the Patriots but the two have reportedly kept in touch, with Brady even telling Brown to prepare for a reunion.
The NFL still has not completed its months-long investigation of Brown’s off-the-field behavior that includes allegations of rape and assault. However, the seven-time Pro Bowler said Friday that he “should be back shortly.”
“I’m ready to get out there and show people what I can do,” Brown said. “I’ve been missing for a couple months, so I’m excited, man, to get back, to get back to what I love and get back to doing what I like to do.”
A bucket of cold water was poured on the idea of Brown joining the Buccaneers, though, when NFL Network reported Thursday that the team is not interested in his services, citing, in part, Brown’s frosty relationship with Tampa Bay Coach Bruce Arians, who was Brown’s offensive coordinator with the Pittsburgh Steelers during his first two seasons.
Meanwhile, there’s Godwin, who currently lays claim to Brady’s famed No. 12. The three-year receiver posted career highs in yards (1,333) and touchdowns (nine) in 2019 on the way to his first Pro Bowl. But that doesn’t mean he’ll keep the jersey number he’s worn dating back high school.
The 24-year-old said Friday in an interview with buccaneers.com that when he talked with Brady, the topic of wearing No. 12 in Tampa Bay did not come up. Godwin says he’ll defer to Brady when the time comes, but he’ll also be perfectly fine with keeping it.
“Obviously, if he doesn’t want it, or if he’s not making a big deal out of it, I’m definitely going to keep it. We’ll see how that goes,” Godwin said. “I think just out of respect for what he’s done, what he’s accomplished, just kind of the career he’s built for himself, you kind of gotta lean into that respect.”
Even though a number hasn’t been finalized yet, fans can preorder a new Brady jersey. The placeholder image amusingly displayed by apparel retailer Fanatics is a white jersey with black lettering and a number zero, the reason being that the Bucs are slated to unveil new uniforms in April.
That fact may not be widely known among NFL fans, who have been heavily inundated recently with photoshops of Brady in the much-maligned Tampa Bay sets that have been worn since 2014.
A Twitter user on Wednesday repurposed a photo of Brady (No. 12 of course) in what the next iteration of Buccaneers uniforms are expected to look like. The new set reportedly heavily resembles the red and pewter combination worn from 1997 through 2013, a stretch that included the franchise’s first and only Super Bowl win. The approximation stems from renderings created by uniform and logo aficionado, Paul Lukas, who recently saw the new uniforms for himself.
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