"Ugh, here we go" - Tom Brady echoes Aaron Rodgers-esque hesitation in deciding to return to football

Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady have both taken extended absences from football but ultimately returned. Some commitments can be taken on at a moment's notice, while others can take weeks or months to ponder. According to Brady, deciding to return to the NFL for another season falls into the second category, echoing the thoughts of Aaron Rodgers a season ago.

According to Sports Illustrated, Brady spoke about his brief retirement during a roundtable discussion after The Match. Here's how he explained the decision-making process:

“At this stage, it’s like 55 percent yes and 45 percent no. It’s not 100-0. That’s just the reality. It’s not that I’m not 100 percent committed, it’s just as soon as I make the commitment to do it, it’s like ,‘Ugh. All right, here we go.’ It’s like running a marathon. You can’t decide two weeks before the marathon, ‘Hey, I’m going to start running.’"

Brady continued, saying that free agency was a catalyst for the decision:

"We got right to free agency, and I felt some pressure to do it and talked to the team and organization, and it all worked out. So the responsibilities are many, people taking care of me, and things that I have off the field that are really important to me like my family, my kids, my wife’s done an amazing job of that."

Brady went on, essentially explaining that a "full" life makes it harder to commit to football fully:

"That’s a big commitment from [Gisele], so it’s harder when you get older. I don’t even think they know what’s coming. Aaron [Rodgers] knows these things because your life gets bigger as we all do, our life gets more full—there’s more responsibilities.”

Aaron Rodgers shared similar thoughts last season when he was openly contemplating retirement. Speaking in an interview on Sirius XM Radio via Zone Coverage, the quarterback also brought in percentages when discussing his ability to commit to the game. Here's how he explained his decision:

"That’s a fun place to be in, you know? When you have passions outside of the game and you still feel like you can give 100 percent to the game. I didn’t want to cheat my teammates, the organization, myself, anybody counting on me, the fans by not being able to be all in, so it took me a lot of the offseason to wrap my head around what the season would look like."

He continued, saying that silence was important:

"And I think it was important for me to remain in silence about a lot of things because of my love and appreciation for the organization, I didn’t want to get into a name-calling match in public. And I think, like I said, there is a lot of wisdom in silence..."

He finished by saying he was "at peace" in coming back:

"Also, a really fun offseason, traveling and enjoying my time and doing the things that make me most happy, so I feel like I’m at peace coming back, totally focused on the season, all in with the guys and excited about 2021."

Tom Brady's critical offseason

New Orleans Saints v Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The 2022 offseason could have gone several ways for the most accomplished quarterback in NFL history. However, no one expected it to go quite the way it did. After losing to the Los Angeles Rams in the playoffs, Brady quietly jogged off the field like any other year.

Most expected him to return but were shocked to learn that Brady was retiring just weeks after the loss. However, not everyone bought in. Six weeks later, those in disbelief were proven right as the quarterback returned to football. It was later rumored the quarterback was planning to become a minority owner of the Miami Dolphins, but Brian Flores' lawsuit turned him off that idea.

With nothing lined up, he returned to football. Soon after, he found another plan for his post-football career. He reached an agreement with FOX to call football games for the company for the next decade following his retirement from the NFL. Some predict 2022 will be his farewell tour, while others also expect him to play as long as he wants. Will this be the final September featuring the quarterback?