That didn’t last long.

            After only 40 days of being in retirement, Tom Brady announced he is returning to the NFL to play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

            On Sunday, the now unretired Buccaneers’ quarterback said the following in an Instagram post:

            “These past two months I’ve realized that my place is still on the field and not in the stands. That time will come. But it’s not now. I love my teammates, and I love my supportive family. They make it all possible. I’m coming back for my 23^rd season in Tampa. Unfinished business. LFG.”    

            When Brady initially retired in February, many found it strange, maybe even rushed, that he announced it only a week after the Buccaneers lost to the eventual Super Bowl Champion Los Angeles Rams.

            In addition, the team was beginning to look for a replacement quarterback to compete with current second-year quarterback Kyle Trask. Some names that were up for discussion were the Houston Texans’ Deshaun Watson, Indianapolis Colts’ (now Washington Commanders’) Carson Wentz, 49ers’ Jimmy Garoppolo, and Buffalo Bills’ (now Pittsburgh Steelers’) Mitch Trubisky.

            Buccaneers’ Head Coach Bruce Arians was very excited to hear that Brady was coming back, as well as several of his teammates.

            Rams’ cornerback Jaelen Ramsey tweeted “THANKY YOU throw that last touchdown on somebody else.”

            The New York Jets official Twitter account tweeted on February 1 “this better be real,” when Brady initially announced he was retiring. Once they found out Brady was coming out of retirement on Sunday, March 13, the team comically tweeted “guess not.”

            It is now possible, with Brady un-retiring, that quarterbacks Eli Manning, Ben Roethlisberger, Philip Rivers, and Drew Brees could all be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame from 2025 thru 2027.

            With Brady no longer retired, this upcoming NFL season just became a whole lot more interesting.