Rob Ninkovich: 'It wouldn't surprise me' if Tom Brady retires after playoffs

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady earned the seventh Super Bowl ring of his career last February and roughly six months before his 44th birthday, and personal trainer and TB12 business partner Alex Guerrero suggested this past summer the future Hall of Famer had at least another two NFL seasons left in the tank. 

One of Brady's former teammates apparently isn't so sure about that. 

Rob Ninkovich, who previously played with Brady as a member of the New England Patriots, recently said on ESPN's "Get Up" he can envision the G.O.A.T. calling time on his playing days sooner rather than later. 

"It wouldn’t surprise me if Tom Brady decided to walk away (this offseason) and do whatever he wants to do," Ninkovich explained, according to Isaiah Houde of Patriots Wire/USA Today. "Right now, Tom is in bonus time. How many 44-year-old quarterbacks have we seen throw for the amount of yards and touchdowns (he has)? He’ll be 45 in August. So, at this point right now, what else does he have to prove to anybody? What else does he have to check off the list?" 

Per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich had little to say about the subject during Thursday's media availability. 

"I don’t know him," Leftwich responded when asked about Ninkovich's comments. "I didn’t really hear the comment, but Tom is playing at a high level. I’ll leave it at that." 

Brady entered last weekend's playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles a legitimate Most Valuable Player candidate who led the NFL in multiple passing categories for the regular season and then made light work of the Eagles. It's a safe bet he currently isn't thinking about his long-term future beyond Sunday's home must-win matchup versus the Los Angeles Rams.