There have been rumors swirling that the Patriots are looking to trade Brady before the last three years of his deal kick in as fully guaranteed. Do you think there is any truth to these rumors?
Rick: I tend to usually believe the reports that come from Chris Mortensen at ESPN, but I do believe also that Brady wants to finish his career with the Patriots. I think it depends on how the season finishes up as to whether or not they will look to trade him. We saw all the fans last week chant Brady’s name, so we know where the fans stand in the whole Brady vs. Belichick rumors that were reported last week. While Belichick may want to play the rookie he drafted in the second round in future years, as long as Brady is in New England, I still can’t see this team trading the face of their franchise, even if its against the “Patriot Way” of trading veterans away a year early rather than a year late.
Kyle: Tom Brady is not going anywhere during this season. The Patriots management might suffer from some hubris, but they aren’t brain damaged. The best chance for the Patriots to be a contender in 2014 is with 37-year-old TB12 at the helm. While he wasn’t perfect last week (his accuracy was lacking somewhat,but the fire and knowledge of the playbook was evident). Ultrabrite model Jimmy Garappolo, may have that someday, but today’s not that day.
Raj: Sometimes when things don’t go too well, the media likes to stir up rumors to catch the audience’s attention…and this applies in all fields: sports, entertainment, politics, you name it! In the situation with Tom Brady and these trade rumors, I feel this is exactly the media’s attempt at creating mixed emotions among the minds of football fans everywhere. They certainly aren’t messing with my mind though. Yes, knowing the Patriots, anything and everything is possible. But honestly, do we really think Brady is going anywhere? Absolutely not! I don’t really blame the media either for this because guess what? It’s their job. They get paid to make interesting stories and this situation is no different. At the same time, Brady also has a job: to play quarterback for the New England Patriots. Sometimes he has his struggles but many times he is successful. Because of those successes and his reliability in clutch situations along with his leadership role on this team, I’m convinced there’s no trade rumors going around anywhere (except maybe in all of ESPN’s studios).
Derek: I think it’s complete fabrication on the part of the media. The way Brady’s deal is structured, the Patriots would have to trade him in-season to prevent the massive cap hit that would result from the last three years of his deal becoming fully guaranteed. Even if some team is dangling two first-round picks, do you really see the Patriots completely giving up on the 2o14 season by getting rid of their franchise player and turning over the reigns to an unproven rookie? Maybe you could make that argument if the Patriots were completely floundering, but there’s no way that the Pats post a bad enough record by the trade deadline where giving up on the season could be viewed as at all reasonable. Brady is here for the long haul. I think the bigger question is what the Patriots will do three years from now when both Brady’s and Garappolo’s deals are coming due at the same time. Time and injury will eventually sort that out. However, this season, and the next, and the next, and the next, Tom Brady is here to stay.
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