Julian Edelman has spent his entire 11-year NFL career with the Patriots but revealed on Monday that if Tom Brady gets his way, at least one of it will be spent with him in Tampa Bay.
Edelman – appearing on the Manningcast “Monday Night Football” of the Buccaneers-Giants game – revealed how his former quarterback “hit me” on his first day with the Buccaneers, asking him, “You want down?” Edelman’s answer?
“Absolutely not.”
Edelman, 35, has finally finished his final NFL season in 2020, playing six games – and starting one – in New England. He had 21 catches for 315 yards and did not touch the ball, ending his career with 620 catches for 6,822 yards and 36 touches in 137 games. He also has three Super Bowl rings to his name. Brady, meanwhile, went on to win Super Bowl LV as the Buccaneer with former Patriots Rob Gronkowski.
This isn’t the first time Edelman has had addressing rumors of Brady’s rejoining in Tampa Vịnh Bay. After the recipient retired in April, Brady joked that Edelman simply didn’t know how to tell Patriots coach Bill Belichick that he just wanted to play in Tampa:
“We know Julian hasn’t retired. Let’s be honest,” Brady said at the 2021 NFL Draft-A-Thon. “He was too scared to tell (Patriots coach) Bill (Belichick) that he was. wanted to go to Tampa. I” was there. “
THAN: Julian Edelman quells speculation he could join Tom Brady, Buccaneers in 2021
In response, Edelman joined “The Michael Irvin Podcast” and said he’s fine with leaving the game when he’s given his best:
“My knee is broken, I’m not going to sit here, you know, I’ve got everything I wanted,” Edelman said. “I have three rings, play in a magical dynasty, with an unbelievable franchise coach, the best quarterback of all time, like, yo, I’m not a greedy person. I I play to win, I play to compete, I don’t need anything else to prove. I’m good with what I did, I gave it all away.”
That said, Edelman admitted on Manningcast that he almost joined another team as a free agent in 2013: He considered joining Eli Manning and Tom Coughlin in Giant.
“It was pretty close,” Edelman said. “I went and visited down there in Jersey and met (Tom) Coughlin and have nothing but respect for the organization … but I have considered my options to return to the Pats … (and ) Peyton, thank you for taking (Wes) Welker from our hands … and the rest is history. You’re saying, ‘Once a Giant, always a Giant.’ Well, ‘Almost a Giant, always a Patriot.’ “
