Tom Brady is retired. Unless he isn’t.
We know Brady is buying a slice of the Raiders, pending approval of the league at large. We also now know that Jimmy Garoppolo might never play for the Raiders, given a foot injury from 2022 that sparked a massive overhaul of his Vegas contract -- including the entire elimination of his $11.25 million signing bonus.
The contractual language, which we uncovered on Saturday, demonstrates the very real possibility that Garoppolo will never play for the Raiders. It came to light this week that he had foot surgery after signing with the team. And while all involved are pushing a “serenity now” narrative, it could be wise to prepare for insanity later.
Really, how does that potential trail of complete nuttiness not lead straight back to Brady? The other options are Brian Hoyer, Aidan O’Connell, and Chase Garbers.
As reported on Saturday by Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Brady might have to agree to never play again in order to secure approval from the NFL’s other owners. Also, if Brady becomes an owner and wants to play, he apparently will be required to get unanimous approval from the other owners to do so -- which frankly makes no sense.
What makes less sense is that the Raiders have pinned their hopes to a mediocre quarterback with a messed-up foot. It makes a little more sense if Brady is lurking as the break-glass emergency option.
