By: Jack Glassman—Sports Editor

On March 13th, 2022, Tom Brady came back to the NFL after a mere forty day retirement. This return has clearly caused issues in Brady and his wife Gisele Bündchen’s. 

In an effort to fix his relationship problems, Brady took eleven days off from training camp to spend more time with his wife and family. This clearly did not fix anything as shortly after his eleven day break from football, it was announced by multiple media sources that both Brady and Bündchen hired divorce lawyers.

With the Tampa Bay Buccaneers losing two of their last three games, it is possible that Brady’s off the field issues are affecting him in game. “It has been getting to Tom’s head, but towards the playoffs, he’ll lock in,” said sophomore Aidan McAuliffe.

As Brady gets older in the NFL, he misses spending time with his family more and more. He says, “I almost look at a football season like you’re going away on deployment for the military”.

Bündchen has expressed her concerns in the past about her husband playing football at an old age and being away from their family. “Obviously, I have my concerns. This is a very violent sport, and I have my children and I would like him to be more present,” she said.

During week one of the NFL season, the rumor of Bündchen and Brady’s split was making its way through the general public. Regardless of the rumor, Bündchen tweeted in support of Brady and his team.

Some say that this tweet was an attempt to show that there was no animosity between them. “Gisele didn’t want Tom to be attacked by all of the fan’s hateful and targeting opinions and she wanted to show there was no bad blood between them two,” senior Tess Letendre said.

Brady originally announced his retirement in March to spend more time with his family, but then called off that decision to continue his career in the NFL. “Ultimately, I feel that everybody has to make a decision that works for them. He needs to follow his joy too,” said Bündchen.

“Football is probably his everything…he’s been in the league more years than he’s been alive at this point,” McAuliffe added. 

Brady’s constant dedication to football takes away from his time to be a father and husband. “I’m assuming he wanted to retire to spend time with his family…he’s probably more absent from his wife and kids when playing in the NFL,” Letendre said.

It is hard for Brady to change the way he spends his time during the season as he has been spending it the same way for 22 seasons. “As much as you want to have this playful balance with the work balance, you’re going to end up doing exactly what you’ve always done, which is why you are who you are,” he says.

Some fans still have confidence in Brady regardless of his off the field issues. “Tom Brady’s the Greatest Of All Time (G.O.A.T.), it’ll take 3-4 weeks for him to fully focus, but I think when he does, the Buccaneers will become Super Bowl contenders,” McAuliffe said.