Patriots' Jerod Mayo Addresses Possibility of Tom Brady Return

The rookie head coach was asked about his old teammate's comments regarding a potential NFL comeback.

Tom Brady / Kris Craig / USA TODAY NETWORK

Tom Brady kicked the hornet's nest earlier this month when he said that he would be "open" to a return to the NFL. Naturally, the head coach of his longtime team was asked about it.

On Monday, Jerod Mayo did an interview with "The Greg Hill Show" and Brady's comments about unretiring came up. The rookie coach said he'd be open to his old teammate coming back to coach, but Mayo expressed doubt that Brady would really come back to play again.

Audio of the comments, with a full transcription of Mayo's answer below:

Patriots Head Coach Jerod Mayo joins the show for "Mayo Mondays"! Could Tom Brady make a potential return this year? @WEEI pic.twitter.com/q5p1xNBUrY

— The Greg Hill Show (@TheGregHillShow) April 29, 2024

"You know, look, I love Tom and the door is always open if he wants to come in here and coach. But as far as going on the field, I don't know. If he comes in here, going back to the 'best player will play,' you have to come here and compete. He loves competition. But I doubt he's going to be walking through these doors any time soon."

This is, of course, the only answer for Mayo to give. His hiring as Bill Belichick's successor was the final nail in the coffin of the dynasty Patriots, and the 2024 season is about moving on from how things used to be— a sentiment punctuated by the selection of quarterback Drake Maye with the third pick in the 2024 NFL draft.

And, for all the hubbub, a Brady comeback still seems like an astronomically slim possibility. The original clip of the all-time great quarterback suggesting he would be open to coming back has gone viral, but in the same podcast he said his playing career is a "thing of the past," as noted by ESPN's Mike Reiss. Plus, Brady himself notes the potential difficulties of a return in tandem with his interest in purchasing a minority stake in the Las Vegas Raiders.

Many Patriots fans would love to see Brady on the sideline as a coach, and there are probably more than a few who think he can still lead the team to the promised land from under center. But both possibilities aren't likely to come to fruition.