Back in the game. While football fans may have been surprised when Tom Brady announced plans to return to the NFL, his loved ones weren’t shocked at all.
“I [was] probably the least surprised, because I love it,” the quarterback, 44, tells Us Weekly exclusively about his family’s reaction to his decision to come out of retirement after just two months. “My wife’s probably not very surprised in the end either, but we’ve had a lot of time together and still have some more time coming up. She’s just amazing how she supports the family and our kids.”
Brady and Gisele Bündchen, 41, who tied the knot in February 2009, welcomed son Benjamin later that year and daughter Vivian in 2012. The NFL champion is also father to 14-year-old Jack, whom he shares with ex Bridget Moynahan.
While speaking to Us about his continued partnership with Hertz, which includes a new commercial poking fun at his sudden un-retirement, Brady praised the supermodel for making it possible for him to continue playing. “There’s so much that she’s put off in order to allow our kids to be nurtured and loved,” he said. “She just does an amazing job with our family. So without her, I wouldn’t be able to do what I love. She’s just an amazing partner.”
Brady continued: [My family] is what allowed me to keep going. They allow me to get out there and go play and have fun and enjoy it. … And when I’m done playing, I’m done, there’s no going back.”
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback has previously spoken about the sacrifices Bündchen has made in her career so he can focus on his own. “I think my wife has, you know, held down the house for a long time now, and I think there’s things that she wants to accomplish,” he said during an October 2021 episode of his “Let’s Go!” podcast. “You know, she hasn’t worked as much in the last 10, 12 years just raising our family and kind of committing to … a life in Boston and then moving to Florida.”
Brady echoed those sentiments while speaking with Us, adding that he’s “lucky” to have so much support from his loved ones off the field. “I’m very lucky to have [a family that] … just loves you unconditionally and wants you to go out there and do what you love to do,” Brady explained. “And then is there when you win, is there when you lose and they love you either way. So in the end, it doesn’t matter how you perform on the field. They just want me home and healthy and without too many bumps or bruises.”
While Bündchen and their children aren’t particularly concerned about whether he manages to win his eighth championship — and his second with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — in 2023, Brady is determined to “have my best season ever” when the football season starts in the fall.
“Of course, that’s why [I came back]. I’m playing to win,” the California native said. “It’s gonna take a lot of effort and there’s no way to do it except to go put your feet on the grass and go make it happen.”
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
