Tom Brady officially announced his retirement on Tuesday, and many were surprised that the legendary quarterback didn’t mention a single word about the New England Patriots. Robert Kraft was a lot more than just surprised.
According to former Patriots linebacker Ted Johnson, Kraft was irate when he read Brady’s nearly 1,000-word Instagram post. Johnson, who won three Super Bowls with New England, said Kraft threw a “temper tantrum.”
“Robert Kraft initially when he first heard the news was very upset and he was screaming and he was yelling,” Johnson said. “There was a significant temper tantrum that he threw after he read this IG post. He was not happy about it in Foxboro. I’m not surprised, but to hear about the outward emotion he showed regarding this post was a little surprising.”
Brady thanked the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, his coaches, teammates, agents, family and many others. Nothing was mentioned about the Patriots, head coach Bill Belichick or Kraft. Everything Brady does is calculated, so the omission was almost certainly intentional.
But why? Some have speculated that Brady could have something bigger planned for the Patriots, like perhaps signing a one-day contract to retire as a member of the team. Kraft’s reported reaction indicates that is not in the works. It’s also possible that Brady wanted to give all the attention to the Bucs, as they signed him two years ago when the Patriots chose to let him walk.
If Kraft truly was furious, he took the high road publicly. He put out a statement praising Brady, which drew a response from the seven-time Super Bowl champion.
Brady also returned the favor after Belichick had kind words for him. We would expect the Patriots to honor Brady at Gillette Stadium sooner rather than later.
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