Tom Brady may be retired, but his presence still looms large-especially in New England. So when the seven-time Super Bowl champ said he won’t be rooting for the Patriots in Super Bowl LX, it didn’t exactly go over well in Foxborough.
Brady, who won six of his rings with the Patriots and helped define a dynasty alongside Bill Belichick, recently said on the Let’s Go! podcast that he’s staying neutral for the big game against the Seattle Seahawks.
“I don’t have a dog in the fight in this one. May the best team win,” Brady said.
That comment didn’t sit right with some of his former teammates-especially those who still bleed Patriots red, white, and blue.
Vince Wilfork, never one to bite his tongue, called him out directly.
“That’s bullcrap, Tom,” Wilfork said during a recent interview on WEEI. “This ain’t political.
Raiders ain’t in it. Say what it is, what you see.”
Wilfork, who anchored the Patriots’ defensive line for years and won a Super Bowl with Brady, wasn’t buying the neutral stance. And he didn’t hold back.
“At the end of the day, if you’re a Patriot for life, you know what it is. Don’t give me that political bullcrap.
That’s just what it is. If you don’t think we’re gonna win, just pick Seattle then.”
It’s worth noting that Brady is now a minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders and also a broadcaster for FOX, which will air the game. Whether those roles influenced his comments is up for debate, but the reaction in New England has been loud and clear.
Asante Samuel, another Super Bowl-winning Patriot, was blunt in his response too.
He said he’s “highly disappointed” in Brady’s remarks-no sugarcoating there.
Linebacker Robert Spillane echoed that frustration.
“Personally, it makes me sick,” Spillane said Thursday, per MassLive Sports.
For a locker room that still leans on the legacy Brady helped build, his neutrality feels like a departure from the "Patriot Way"-at least to some of the players still wearing the uniform.
Rob Gronkowski, always good for a lighter take, offered a different perspective.
The star tight end, who won four Super Bowls with Brady, hasn’t talked to his longtime quarterback about the game. But he offered a theory that feels very on-brand for TB12.
“He probably wants to be the quarterback,” Gronkowski said on Up & Adams. “He’s that competitive. He probably wants to be the guy in the Super Bowl right now.”
It’s a fair point. Brady’s competitiveness is legendary. If there's anyone who hates watching from the sidelines-especially during a Super Bowl-it’s him.
Not everyone in New England is upset, though.
Stefon Diggs, the Patriots’ top wideout, took a more measured view of Brady’s comments.
“Does Tony Romo still pull for the Cowboys? I’d be surprised,” Diggs said Thursday, via New England Football Journal.
“Peyton Manning still loves Denver. I don’t hear him say too much about the Colts.”
Diggs' take highlights the reality of modern football careers. Players move.
Roles change. Allegiances evolve.
And maybe that’s all Brady was signaling-he’s not in the game, so he’s not picking sides.
Still, for a fanbase and franchise that built its identity around No. 12, hearing him sit this one out stings a little. Whether it’s loyalty, politics, or just a desire to stay neutral in his new roles, Brady’s words have sparked a conversation that only he could ignite.
Even in retirement, Tom Brady finds a way to be at the center of the Super Bowl storyline.