Tom Brady Latest: 'Mystery Team' Emerges, While Titans Like Their Chances Of Landing QB
By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston
BOSTON (CBS) -- We've now reached the "Mystery Team" portion of The Tom Brady Offseason Of 2020. Oh, brother.
Appearing on ESPN's "Get Up" on Friday, Jeremy Fowler revealed that the Titans like their chances to win the war for Brady. He also reported that a team has emerged from the shadows to silently pursue the services of one Mr. Tom Brady.
"I just spoke with sources on this. I was told the Titans believe they have a pretty good chance in a head-to-head matchup with the Patriots to land Tom Brady," Fowler said. "I'm also told that there's a mystery team -- a third team -- that's firmly in the mix, all right? So cue the music."
No.
Don't do it.
Don't cue any music.
We're not doing that.
OK, fine. Whatever. We'll cue the music. Blast this Hanz Zimmer jam at full volume as you read the rest of the story. Make this a whole experience. DO IT!
If there is a mystery team, the level of mystery can only be so high. There are only 32 teams in that there football league they've got going on, and we know the quarterback situations with most of them.
By now, you've surely heard of the teams that are interested to some degree in Brady: the Patriots, Titans, Chargers, Raiders, Buccaneers, and 49ers. The Giants and the Colts are out, per reports. The Cowboys remain out of the mix, by all accounts.
The Dolphins have downplayed their potential to land Brady, with both Brian Flores and Stephen Ross issuing self-deprecating comments about how bad their team is. That makes the Dolphins ripe to be a potential MYSTERY TEAM.
The Panthers might be in flux at the quarterback position, as they've been unwilling to commit to Cam Newton as he recovers from a foot injury this offseason. But Brady to the Panthers, with college coach Matt Rhule getting his first crack at the NFL? It seems far-fetched. Implausible.
Elsewhere in the AFC East, you've got the Bills and Jets. That's a no and no. They love their young QBs, for better and for worse.
In the AFC North, Baltimore and Cleveland are all set, and a Pittsburgh wooing of Tom Brady in the midst of a Ben Roethlisberger rehab is about as unlikely as unlikely gets. The Bengals are probably going to go ahead and grab Joe Burrow with that No. 1 overall pick.
The Jaguars theoretically could be a "mystery team," but Tom Brady and Gisele Bundchen are not going to live in Jacksonville, Florida. Houston is quite happy with Deshaun Watson.
In the West, perhaps John Elway and the Broncos are lurking in the shadows, waiting for the opportunity to pounce. Elway's history of luring Peyton Manning several years back would lend some credence to that concept. And really, no matter how much the Broncos say they are happy to roll with Drew Lock ... we will continue to doubt that commitment.
In the NFC East, the Redskins, Giants and Eagles are happy with their QBs. The Cowboys ... well, they haven't yet committed to Dak Prescott. And really, the idea of Tom Brady sporting the star on his helmet and leading the Cowboys on to the field every Sunday just has to get Jerry Jones' juices flowing to the point where he might need a cold towel to reset his heart rate.
Green Bay will probably stick with Aaron Rodgers. Most likely.
The Vikings have Kirk Cousins under contract for another year at a billion dollars, and the Lions owe several billion bucks to Matthew Stafford. Perhaps the Bears emerge as a dark horse.
The Saints are (at least in theory) going to re-sign Drew Brees, and the Falcons are committed long term to Matt Ryan. The Bucs and Panthers have already been discussed.
Then there is the West: San Francisco is most intriguing, but they would not be a "mystery" team at this point. The Seahawks are probably going to want to go ahead and stick with their franchise guy in Russ Wilson. The Rams foolishly signed up for a thousand years of Jared Goff, which seems like a major goof on their part. And the Cardinals took Kyler Murray No. 1 overall last year, so rule them out.
Based on that scientific thought experiment, here is the complete list of franchises that might qualify under the "Mystery Team" tag:
--Miami Dolphins
--Denver Broncos
--Dallas Cowboys
--Chicago Bears
--Carolina Panthers (maybe but not really)
--Jacksonville Jaguars (ha ha just kidding)
I guess we could throw a few more logs on the MYSTERY TEAM fire:
--Hamilton Tiger-Cats
--Saskatchewan Rough Riders
--Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Literally nobody is talking about those teams. Makes you wonder why not, doesn't it??
Oh wait. I forgot one. Here's another potential MYSTERY TEAM for Tom Brady:
--Nobody. No mystery team.
That's the thing with reporting on a MYSTERY TEAM. If that MYSTERY TEAM never escapes the MYSTERY phase, then it's a no harm, no foul situation. Nobody even remembers about the MYSTERY TEAM hullabaloo.
Fun!
Nevertheless. You've just got to love it when a MYSTERY TEAM gets involved. Because if there was one thing missing from this breathless, mostly speculative season of Tom Brady rumors and reports, it was the famed MYSTERY TEAM.
Thankfully, we've now gotten that.
Less than two weeks until we all get some clarity.
You can email Michael Hurley or find him on Twitter @michaelFhurley.
