If Tom Brady wants to add another Super Bowl ring to his collection, it looks like he's going to have to do it in Tampa Bay.
According to CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora, Brady is going to sign with the Buccaneers. According to NFL.com, the deal is going to pay Brady at least $30 million per year.
On the surface, Tampa might seem like a weird landing spot for Brady. After all, Brady is a guy who has as many Super Bowl wins (six) in his career as the Buccaneers have playoffs wins in their entire franchise history (The Bucs also have one Super Bowl win, which came back in 2002). That being said, Brady's decision to make the move to Tampa actually makes a lot of sense, and not just for tax purposes (There's no state income tax in Florida, which Brady and his $30 million contract will probably appreciate).
So why does this move make sense?
For one, the Bucs already have the logo ready.
Make it so. pic.twitter.com/TvCwYUlGRS
— Paul Dellegatto⚡️FOX (@PaulFox13) March 17, 2020
OK, so that's not an actual reason, but let's get to the five reasons why Brady's decision to take his talents to Tampa was the right one for the 42-year-old quarterback.
1. Tampa has offensive weapons
If there's one main thing that seemed to frustrate Tom Brady in New England last season, it was the fact that he didn't have any offensive weapons. The offensive firepower was so bad last year that the Patriots only had one wide receiver who finished the season with more than 400 yards (Julian Edelman). Let me repeat that: Besides Edelman, no other wide receiver on the team crossed the 400-yard mark.
If Brady signs with the Bucs, that definitely won't be a problem and that's because Tampa is loaded on offense. The Buccaneers currently have a situation that Brady could thrive in with skill players like Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate. Evans and Godwin finished the year with more receiving yardage (2,490) than the Patriots top five wide receivers combined. Edelman, Phillip Dorsett, Jakobi Myers, Josh Gordon and Mohamed Sanu finished the year with 2,367 yards. That firepower will definitely be enticing to Brady, as well as the fact that the Buccaneers have two talented tight ends in Brate and Howard. As you probably noticed during his time in New England, Brady thrives when he has tight ends to throw to.
Although the Buccaneers have plenty of skill players, they do have a few holes to fill, but that's where my next point comes in.
2. Salary cap space
When the NFL's tampering period kicked off on Monday, the Buccaneers were one of the league's busiest teams. Not only did they franchise tag Shaq Barrett, but they also signed Jason Pierre-Paul to an extension. Despite those moves, the Buccaneers still have nearly $60 million in cap space to work with, which means they have more than enough money to sign Brady and add a few weapons.
For Brady, the two biggest drawbacks of going to Tampa would probably be the fact that their offensive line wasn't great last year and the fact that they don't have any great running backs. With their $60 million in cap space, the Buccaneers could fix both of those problems in free agency. In the running back department, the Buccaneers could go after someone like Melvin Gordon, who would be an instant upgrade over every running back on the team's roster. As for offensive linemen, the Bucs could go after someone like Jason Peters or they could try and pull off a trade for Brady's old buddy, Joe Thuney, who was recently tagged by the Patriots.
3. Coach who wants to win now
Brady is going to be 43 when the season starts, which means he needs to win now, and since that's the case, no coach would be better for him than Bruce Arians. Not only is Arians 67 years old, but he's had some health issues in the past, so you know he's not looking to build a team that's going to win in five years, he wants to win a Super Bowl as soon as possible. Plus, he's already proven he can win with a veteran quarterback. During his time in Arizona, Arians traded for Carson Palmer in a move that ended with the Cardinals making it all the way to the NFC title game in 2015.
4. Ownership that needs him
One reason Brady has been linked to the Chargers is because there's a feeling that L.A. is desperate to sell tickets in their new stadium, which is something that would be much easier to do if Brady were on the team. Well, believe it or not, that same logic applies to Tampa Bay. If the Bucs sign Brady, their attendance would almost certainly sky rocket, which is something that the Glazer family would love, especially when you consider the fact that the Bucs had the second-worst home attendance percentage in the NFL last year. (On average, Raymond James Stadium was only 79.1% full for Bucs home games in 2019, which was only better than the Bengals). If Brady's on the roster, there's a good chance that every Buccaneers home game will be a sell out in 2020.
5. Super Bowl in Tampa
Although Brady has set dozens of postseason NFL records during his 20-year career, there is still one thing he's never done. As a matter of fact, it's something that no player in NFL history has ever done: Play a Super Bowl in their home stadium. No team has ever made it to the Super Bowl in a year where their stadium is hosting it, and you have to think that the chance of making history would be very enticing to Brady. Leading the Bucs to the Super Bowl in a year where the game is being played in Tampa would be the perfect swan song to Brady's career.
Bonus: TB12 merchandise sells itself
Let's be honest, if Brady is looking to sell his TB12 merchandise, Tampa is going to be the easiest place to sell it, and that's because the TB initials on all his shirts, hats and organic food products won't just stand for Tom Brady anymore, they'll also stand for Tampa Bay. If Brady lands in Tampa, sales would almost certainly go through the 12. TB signing in TB almost makes too much sense.