Tom Brady, Josh McDaniels, New England Patriots. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
It was reported Tom Brady left the New England Patriots in part because of Josh McDaniels. Brady has since refuted that report. What’s going on here?
Tom Brady says he didn’t leave the New England Patriots because of Josh McDaniels.
Or at least, he is refuting NFL reporter Gary Myers. Per Myers’ report on Monday, “Hard to present an order of why Tom Brady didn’t want to return to Patriots. But one thing has been very much overlooked, according to an excellent source: His deteriorating relationship with OC Josh McDaniels. Tom was worn out by Josh after all these years. That surprised me.”
Myers is the author if the New York Time’s bestseller, Brady vs. Manning. While he has been lambasted for his reporting in the hours since, Myers’ initial report has caused a lot of stir. Brady went to Instagram on Monday evening denying the report. He took a screenshot of Michael David Smith’s article from Monday afternoon on Pro Football Talk and called all of it, “nonsense.”
In Brady’s Instagram post, it shows the following remarks: “Please stop this nonsense!”, “Please be more responsible with reporting” and “19 years together and brothers for life [heart emoji] @real_josh_mcd. Cleary, Brady was upset about what was saying about he and his former colleague’s working relationship and friendship.
McDaniels had been Brady’s offensive coordinator for the bulk of his time in New England. Outside of the disastrous two-year run McDaniels had as the Denver Broncos head coach from 2009-10, McDaniels had always been at One Patriot Place with Brady during this dynastic run. While Brady head coach Bill Belichick’s relationship was strictly professional, he and McDaniels were buddies.
So it seems as though Brady left New England for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a myriad of reasons, but McDaniels was not one of them. Not having a long-term deal to play until he’s 45-years-old and retire as a Patriot is up there. Going to a warmer climate to have fun playing football again could be another. It just doesn’t seem like getting away from McDaniels is one of them.
While other relationships may have deteriorated over his 20 years in Foxborough, it doesn’t seem as though friction between quarterback and offensive coordinator was why Brady left New England. Nothing is forever, not even the greatest football dynasty we have ever seen. For Brady to refute this claim this quickly, it means his departure 100 percent wasn’t about McDaniels.