"He doesn't do things on a whim" - Tom Brady's teammate doesn't see legendary QB returning to NFL 

Former Michigan Wolverines teammate doesn’t see quarterback Tom Brady returning to the NFL. Hall of Fame cornerback Charles Woodson stated that Brady is the type of person who doesn’t do things on a whim:

“I don’t think Tom is one of those people that just does things on a whim.”

The cornerback and quarterback played together at Michigan for one season in 1997 as the Wolverines won the AP National Championship with an undefeated record of 12-0.

Woodson noted that some athletes return after declaring their retirement.

Speaking prior to the 64th running of the Daytona 500, where he served as the Grand Marshal, the FOX NFL and college football analyst doesn’t see the 15-time Pro Bowl quarterback making a comeback:

“I think that he’s at that point where he played so long, and it seems like over the last 10 years, people have been trying to push him out of the league. 'Oh, he’s fallen off a cliff. He’s done playing.’

He concluded his comments by saying that this previous year was Brady proving there’s no limitation to how long he can play:

“This past year, he just proved that really there’s no limit to how long he can play, but now you hear guys saying, ‘Don’t leave.’ I think he’s in a good place in terms of, you know what, everybody knows if I wanted to, I could play until 45, but I’m not. So, take that.”

NFL Career Paths of Woodson and Brady

Woodson won the Heisman Trophy in 1997 and was the fourth overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders. He spent his first eight seasons with the Raiders (1998-2005), winning NFL AP Defensive Rookie of the Year honors.

The cornerback then went on to join the Green Bay Packers for seven seasons (2006-2012).

He won the 2009 AP Defensive Player of the Year after leading the league in interceptions with nine and interceptions returned for a touchdown with three.

The former Wolverine won his first Super Bowl when Green Bay defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers by a score of 31-25 in the 2010 season.

Woodson played the final three seasons of his 18 year career in the NFL with Oakland (2013-2016). He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021.

Brady was a sixth-round draft pick for the New England Patriots in the 2000 NFL Draft.

Despite not starting his rookie season, the quarterback played in the 2001 season as he led the Patriots to Super Bowl 36, defeating the St. Louis Rams. It was the first of six Lombardi Trophies he won with New England.

He left the Patriots after 20 seasons to sign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in March 2020. The three-time MVP won his seventh Super Bowl in his first season with the team as they beat the Kansas City Chiefs by a score of 31-9.

In year two, he led Tampa Bay to the Divisional Round versus the Los Angeles Rams, losing the game with a score of 30-27.

It proved to be his final game in the NFL, as he called it a career after 22 seasons. The 44-year-old retired as the league’s all-time leader in passing yards (84,520) and touchdown passes (624).

Like Woodson, Brady will be enshrined in the Hall of Fame, where they’ll be teammates once again.