bradywinner.jpg
getty images

Tom Brady sent shockwaves around the NFL on Sunday night when he surprisingly announced that he would be coming out of retirement. 

The Buccaneers quarterback originally announced that he was done with football on February 1, but almost as soon as he said he was retired, there was plenty of speculation that he would end up playing in 2022 and that's now exactly what's going to happen. 

When it comes to Brady's decision, there are a lot of winners and losers here and we're going to cover them all right here, so let's get started. 

Winner: Buccaneers

This one is pretty obvious: With Brady coming out of retirement, the biggest winner is definitely the team that employs him. From the front office to the ticket office to the coaching staff to Tampa Bay's wide receivers to the fans, everyone associated with the Buccaneers comes out a winner. 

For the front office, Brady's decision to return is going to make life easier for Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht in free agency. Getting a free agent to sign in Tampa becomes much easier when Brady is your quarterback. As a matter of fact, Brady's decision had instant ramifications in free agency on Sunday night when Ryan Jensen re-signed with the Bucs just hours after Brady's announcement. It won't be surprising if other key free agents -- like Rob Gronkowski -- also make the decision to return to Tampa Bay now that Brady is on board. 

For the coaching staff -- specifically Bruce Arians and offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich -- it's going to be a lot easier to get things done on offense with Brady running the show. 

The receivers in Tampa are likely thrilled to know that Brady is coming back because it's almost a guarantee that everyone's numbers would have gone down in 2022 with anyone but Brady at quarterback. 

The ticket office is probably also loving the news because it's going to be a lot easier to sell tickets this year knowing that Brady is the team's quarterback. 

Of course, The fans are the biggest winners and that's because they get to watch a team that should have a good chance to get back to the Super Bowl for the second time in three seasons. 

Loser: Every team in the NFC south that's not the Buccaneers

After Brady originally announced his retirement in February, the NFC South looked like it was on its way to being the worst division in football. With Brady out of the way, that left Matt Ryan as the best QB in the division, but that was only because none of the other teams really had a QB. The Panthers, Saints and Buccaneers were basically going to duke it out for Deshaun Watson with the winner instantly becoming the favorite in the division. With Brady back in Tampa, the Buccaneers are now the favorite and if no one lands Watson, then the Buccaneers could coast to a division title in 2022. 

Winner: The NFL

Whether you love or hate Tom Brady, you can probably admit that the NFL is a lot more fun when Brady is playing. With Brady returning, the NFL will be getting at least one more year of having its most popular player. If you're wondering what kind of pull Brady has, just consider this: The Buccaneers played in two of the top-eight most-watched regular season games in 2021. 

Loser: Every team on the Buccaneers 2022 schedule

Any team that was going to play Tampa Bay in 2022 probably looked at the game as a winnable one, but with Brady back, that's not going to be the case anymore. The Buccaneers have a tough schedule in 2022 that includes both Super Bowl teams (Rams and Bengals) along with the Chiefs, Cowboys, Ravens, 49ers and Cardinals. Basically, it's a schedule that would have been tough to navigate without Brady, but every game on the schedule is now winnable thanks to his return. 

Winner: Teams going after Deshaun Watson

The Buccaneers were reportedly in the hunt for Watson, but with Brady now returning to Tampa Bay, that means the Bucs are out of the sweepstakes, which means the teams looking to trade for Watson now have one less competitor to deal with. 

Loser: Fan who bought Tom Brady's 'final' TD pass

The football that Tom Brady threw for the "final" TD pass of his career was auctioned off over the weekend and it was sold for $518,000. Of course, the huge problem for the guy who bought it is that the auctioned ball is likely no longer going to be the final TD ball of Brady's career, which means his $518,000 football is probably now worth about $518. 

I think we can all agree that the person who bought that ball is definitely the biggest loser in all of this. 

Winner: Jalen Ramsey

If Brady had stayed retired, Jalen Ramsey would have gone down as the player who gave up the final TD pass of the quarterback's career, but now that he's not retired, there's a good chance that distinction is going to go to someone else and let's just say that Ramsey sounds kind of thrilled about that. 

Of course, the Rams do play the Buccaneers in 2022, so it is possible that Brady still throws his final TD pass against Ramsey. 

Loser: Blaine Gabbert and Kyle Trask

After Brady retired, these two were the next ones up on the quarterback depth chart for the Buccaneers and unfortunately for them, it looks like they're going to be spending at least one more year on the bench (You could argue that Brady returning is a good thing for both quarterbacks since they'll get another year of learning under the GOAT, but we're putting them in the loser's section). 

Winner: Fans in Germany

The NFL will be holding its first regular season ever in Germany this year and the league has already announced that the Buccaneers will be hosting the game, which means German fans will get a front row seat to see Tom Brady. This game will mark the fourth country that Brady has played in. During his 22-year carer, Brady has played two games in London (2009, 2012) and one game in Mexico City (2017) along with his games in the United States. 

Getting to go on a paid work trip to Munich seems like a good reason to come out of retirement. 

Loser: Aaron Rodgers

With Russell Wilson shipped off to the AFC, it was starting to look like Rodgers might have a clear path to the Super Bowl in the NFC, but now, that path has definitely gotten a little rockier with the return of Brady. Rodgers hasn't been to the Super Bowl in more than a decade and if he doesn't get back before the end of his career, his legacy is definitely going to take a hit and it seems that Brady has returned to make sure that happens. 

Winner: Big Ben

The person who likely had the biggest sigh of relief on Sunday night might have been Ben Roethlisberger. When Brady originally announced his retirement, it meant that he was going to be eligible for the HOF the same year as Big Ben and let's just say that if they went in together, Roethlisberger definitely would have been overshadowed. With Brady playing another year, that likely means they won't go in the HOF together, which means Big Ben should get a big celebration and he won't have to worry about Patriots and Buccaneers fans taking over Canton when he eventually gets inducted.