Pat McAfee lost out on an opportunity to win a Super Bowl with Tom Brady due to the NFL’s COVID regulations

Tom Brady almost brought another iconic player out of retirement; that player is Pat McAfee, the former kicker for the Indianapolis Colts and now host of the Pat McAfee Show. He revealed this on the latest episode of his show. He was so close to signing a contract with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to join the special teams, but owing to COVID guidelines, he could not do so.

The league’s COVID guidelines mandated that players must either test positive for the antibodies or complete a 10-day stay in the bubble and get a negative test.

Bruce (Arians) was texting me...from my angle this is how it went, I got tested for those antibodies, if I would have had the antibodies then I wouldn't have had to do the 10-day hotel stay and I would have been on the Bucs right against the Falcons that week and then I would have had to do nothing because (Ryan) Succop came back that weekend. So, I would have just been on the roster. McAfee said.

Pat McAfee lost out on an opportunity to get a ring sitting on the bench for the majority of the season

The Buccaneers needed kickers heading into the game against the Atlanta Falcons, as Ryan Succop was not available. 

Pat McAfee was approached by head coach Bruce Arians to fill in, and he did consider doing so. However, owing to the regulations put in place by the NFL, McAfee tested negative for the antibodies, which meant he would have to stay in a bubble for 10 days. But the team needed him immediately, and as a result, things did not work out.

The Buccaneers would have used him for just one weekend; the following week, Ryan Succop came back and was available for the remainder of the season.

This meant that Pat McAfee would virtually have to sit on the bench, and that season, the team went on to win the Super Bowl, so he would automatically have gotten a championship ring for doing nothing!

Unfortunately for him, fate had other plans. Things did not really go his way, and ultimately, the team moved on without him. 

General manager Jason Licht, who was on the show, reminisced about what could have been and how McAfee could have joined the entire Buccaneers squad on the boats during their iconic Super Bowl parade! 

Irrespective of the outcome, Pat McAfee continues to be happy and is doing well, but it would have been phenomenal to win a ring without doing anything!