4. He knew he was leaving New England before last season
This can’t be stressed enough.
Tom Brady may not have known he was going to end up a part of the Buccaneers, but he knew he wouldn’t be a Patriot far before the beginning of the 2019 season.
Tom Brady tells Howard Stern he knew before the start of last season that it would be his last year as a Patriot.
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) April 8, 2020
He wanted a new change of pace, new scenery and new opportunity. That was apparent to him far before any analyst predicted that he would sign elsewhere.