Tom Brady Shockingly Reveals He Almost Signed With Bears in Free Agency

Brady ultimately chose the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a free agent in 2020.

Brady claims he heavily considered the Bears as a free agent in 2020. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Tom Brady dropped a bomb on Sunday.

During Fox's broadcast of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers-Philadelphia Eagles game in Week 4, Brady revealed he almost signed with the Chicago Bears as a free agent in 2020. He ultimately signed with the Buccaneers.

Brady said that he created 18 criteria for each of the franchises he was considering after he walked away from the New England Patriots. He brought the notecards he used to help determine his next destination.

The three-time MVP said, "Chicago was a team, and I've never told that story before, they were very stealth in their recruitment. I was seriously considering, but in the end, it came down to Tampa. And it was close to my son Jack, I loved Bruce Arians and the role that he played in offense, and ultimately the great players like Mike Evans and Chris Godwin that I'm still out there watching today."

"Chicago was a team, and I've never told that story before, they were very stealth in their recruitment." @TomBrady shares the notecards he had when he was making his decision in free agnecy 👀⬇️ pic.twitter.com/9pXOMSeFyF

— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 29, 2024

Wow, the NFL would have looked like a much different place if Brady had chosen the Bears.

He led the Buccaneers to a Super Bowl title during his first season in Tampa. It was his seventh Super Bowl win and he earned his fifth Super Bowl MVP award. He spent two more seasons with the Bucs before retiring after the 2022 campaign.

The 2020 Bears started 5-1, but lost six consecutive games after that, all while relying on Mitch Trubisky and Nick Foles at quarterback. They certainly could have used Brady.

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