Tom Brady Can’t Replace the ‘Thrill’ of Football in Retirement

Tom Brady played in the NFL until he was 45 — an astounding age for a league in which the average player lasts less than four years. Over one year after leaving the field, he gave Us Weekly an exclusive update on his retirement.

Brady, 46, admits retirement is “different” and he is hard-pressed to find anything close to his professional career.

“I mean, nothing’s going to replace the thrill of running out on the field in front of 70,000 people doing something that I love to do with a great group of teammates,” he exclusively tells Us to promote the campaign for the Hertz Gold Plus Rewards loyalty program. Brady has been a Hertz partner since 2021.

Brady should know, maybe better than anyone. Some will call him the greatest player ever, and he is destined for the Pro Football Hall of Fame as soon as he becomes eligible in 2028. A fan favorite for two decades in New England, then for three seasons in Tampa Bay, he had that “thrill” to play in packed stadiums for 23 years.

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Though Brady was still good enough to play yet another season, he says he was ready to hang up his cleats after his third season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“It was just time for me to try something different,” he says. “But loved, obviously, every aspect that I had. I loved my teammates. I loved playing. I loved the communities that really embraced me and they gave so much to me in my life and they’ve made my life.”

Though Brady is on to “something different,” some things don’t change. Known in his playing days as a relentless worker, Brady is still staying in peak condition.

“I’ve actually probably got a little more workout focused, try to dial in some things a little more specifically to what I need to eat and how I stay hydrated,” he explains. “And my rest. Probably the one thing that hasn’t been as great is I travel probably too much. I feel like I’m always on the road, on an airplane.”

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Old habits die hard, and Brady admits that he can’t just let his physique “get away from me.” He feels better when he’s active.

There’s another reason he has to stay in shape, and, no, it’s not another shocking comeback to pro football. It’s about his kids.

“I’m trying to keep up with my boys as best I can,” he said. “Although my little girl is a pretty great athlete, too, so she’s got me out there working hard, too.”

Brady has three kids, son Benjamin, 14, and daughter Vivian, 11, whom he shares with ex-wife Gisele Bündchen, and son Jack, 16, whom he shares with ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan.