Veteran quarterback Tom Brady believes his former team, the New England Patriots, will do great things even without him. In an interview with Howard Stern on SiriusXM, Brady said he wants the Patriots to do great and he expects them to do great next season even without him under center. “They can do great. And they will do great. They've got great coaches. Great players,” Brady said when asked by Stern on how he expects the Patriots to perform next season, per a report by Nick Goss of NBC Sports. The 42-year-old Brady signed a two-year deal worth $50 million with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers recently after a 20-year stint with the Patriots, where he won six Super Bowl trophies.
Aside from Brady, the Patriots lost several key players to free agency in the offseason, including linebackers Kyle Van Noy and Jamie Collins. Van Noy signed a massive four-year contract worth $51 million with the Miami Dolphins, including $30 million in guaranteed money. Collins, for his part, who agreed to a three-year deal worth $30 million with the Detroit Lions, with $18 million in guaranteed money.
Slater says Patriots to continue winning ways
Earlier, veteran special teamer Matthew Slater said the Patriots will continue their winning tradition, even without Brady. The Patriots are expected to start second-year quarterback Jarrett Stidham, who served as Brady’s backup last season. Slater, who recently signed a two-year contract extension worth an average of $2.6 million per year, is confident that Stidham could step up as a potential starter if the Patriots don’t sign another quarterback from the free-agent pool.
The Patriots currently carry two quarterbacks in Stidham and veteran Brian Hoyer after releasing Cody Kessler recently. Also, former New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning said the Patriots’ dynasty will continue because of head coach Bill Belichick’s winning formula. Manning said that Belichick has instituted a system that will help the Patriots succeed even with a different quarterback at the helm.
Brady files for several trademarks in Tampa Bay
On the same day that he signed with the Buccaneers, Brady filed a trademark for "TB x TB". Despite drawing some criticism for his filing, Brady’s company, TEB Capital Management, did not stop there. According to trademark lawyer Josh Gerben, per a report by Darren Hartwell by NBC Sports, Brady’s company has filed trademark applications for “TOMPA BAY” and “TAMPA BRADY.” Based on the filings, Brady’s company wants to use the trademarks to sell clothing, headwear and footwear.
Gerben said there is also a possibility that Brady made the filing so as to prevent bootleg products, such as shirts, bearing the said phrases, from hitting the market.
Tom Brady's company (TEB Capital Management) has filed 2 new trademarks for:
1. TOMPA BAY
2. TAMPA BRADY
The filings, made on April 6th, indicate Brady intends to sell clothing, headwear and footwear using the trademarks.
My full breakdown 👇#TomBrady #GoBucs pic.twitter.com/QZxK6LFB2Z
— Josh Gerben (@JoshGerben) April 10, 2020