Why is Tom Brady still on the Buccaneers roster?

Tom Brady announced his retirement from the NFL following the 2021 NFL season. His 22 legendary seasons combined for the greatest career the NFL has ever seen. He is the all-time leader in many passing categories, including yards and touchdowns. He appeared in ten Super Bowls, winning seven of them and was named the MVP in five of them. All three are the most in NFL history.

Though he announced the reitrement himself on his social media accounts, Brady has not officially been moved to the retirement list by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He is still on their active roster, where he is likely to remain for at least the next few months. The official NFL league calendar changes to the 2022 season on June 1st, so it's unlikely that the Buccaneers will process their retirement before then.

There is a significant financial advantage in waiting until after June 1st to officially move Tom Brady from the active roster to the retirement list. The Buccaneers would save 24 million dollars in spending money for the 2022 offseason by waiting until later.

Tom Brady is owed a total of 32 million dollars for the 2022 NFL season, the final year remaining on his contract. If he were to be moved to the retirement list prior to June 1st, the entire contract would count against their 2022 salary cap. If they wait until after June 1st, only 8 million dollars would count against their 2022 salary cap while the remaining 24 million would be deferred to the 2023 offseason.

The timing of Tom Brady's official retirement has a major impact on the Buccaneers' 2022 offseason

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady

The Buccaneers face a crucial offseason for the future of their roster. They have several big decisions to make, including who's going to be their starting quarterback next season. They may choose to go with Kyle Trask, who they selected in the NFL Draft last year. If not, they will need to sign an experienced free agent or explore the trade market, both of which can be expensive.

The Buccaneers also have several expiring contracts this offseason. Some of the key players they could lose to free agency include Rob Gronkowski (if he doesn't retire), Chris Godwin, Ryan Jensen, Alex Cappa, Leonard Fournette, Richard Sherman, Carlton Davis, Jordan Whitehead, Andrew Adams, Jason Pierre-Paul and Ndamukong Suh, among others.

Most of the Buccaneers' major roster decisions this offseason are going to be based off what they can afford to keep. Waiting until June 1st to officially process Tom Brady's retirement would give them an extra 24 million dollars to play with. This would provide them with a lot more flexibility when making these difficult roster decisions.

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