It's Official: Brady Says He's Retiring

FOXBOROUGH, MA — It's official: Tom Brady is retiring.

In a series of Twitter posts Tuesday morning, Brady confirmed he's ending a 22-year-run as the National Football League's premier quarterback.

"This is difficult for me to write, but here it goes: I am not going to make that competitive commitment anymore," Brady wrote on social media. "I have loved my NFL career, and now it is time to focus my time and energy on other things that require my attention."

The announcement follows a weekend of reports that Brady had decided to step down — reports Brady denied as recently as Monday night on his "Let's Go!" radio show on SiriusXM.

"I've done a lot of reflecting the past week and have asked myself difficult questions," Brady said Tuesday. "And I'm proud of what we have achieved. My teammates, coaches, fellow competitors, and fans deserve 100% of me, but right now, it's best I leave the field of play to the next generation of dedicated and committed athletes."

Brady thanked several people in the series of tweets, including the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he played the final two seasons of his 22-year NFL career. He also thanked his wife and family.

"As I sit here now....I think of all the great players and coaches I was privileged to play with and against - the competition was fierce and deep, JUST HOW WE LIKE IT," Brady said. "But the friendships and relationships are just as fierce and deep....I feel like the luckiest person in the world."

Noticeably absent in the list of acknowledgements in Brady's retirement announcement, however, was any direct mention of the New England Patriots, including owner Robert Kraft and coach Bill Belichick.

"I have the greatest respect for Tom personally and always will. His humility, coupled with his drive and ambition, truly made him special," Kraft said in a statement posted on the Patriots Website. "I will always feel a close bond to him and will always consider him an extension of my immediate family."

On Monday night, Brady said he was still "day to day" on whether he'll retire, contradicting a widely circulated weekend report that he made his decision to step away from football.

"We're in such an era of information and people want to be in front of the news often," Brady said on his "Let's Go!" podcast with broadcasting buddy Jim Gray and former NFL receiver Larry Fitzgerald. "I totally understand that. I understand that's the environment we're in. I think for me, it's just literally day to day with me."

News outlets, including Patch, ran with ESPN's report Saturday that Brady had decided to retire. Past and current teammates congratulated the GOAT — "Greatest Of All Time" — on social media. Even his TB12 brand's Twitter account got in on the farewell, before deleting it.

"I'm responsible for what I say or do and not for what others say or do," Brady said.

The TB12 backtracking came after Brady's camp and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers largely denied such a decision had been made.

Brady's agent, Don Yee, didn't confirm the report but said his client would soon make an announcement on his plans. Brady's dad, Tom Brady Sr., was much more forceful in his response, telling KRON in Tampa his son had not decided to retire.

Brady had sounded like a man leaning toward retirement following his team's last-second loss to the Rams in the NFC divisional round, saying he would discuss with his family. ESPN reported Brady's family and health were key factors in his retirement decision, and to a lesser extent the Buccaneers' championship window potentially closing.