Tom Brady responds to NY Jets rumors with an emphatic answer

The NY Jets have been connected to seemingly every possibly available quarterback under the sun since Aaron Rodgers suffered a devastating torn Achilles in Week 1. Even longtime rival Tom Brady's name has been thrown out there.

Brady officially retired from football (for good this time — or so he says) in February, ending what is arguably the greatest career of any professional football player in history. That hasn't stopped his name from coming up in Jets rumors, however.

On Monday, Brady did his best to stomp out those rumors and put an end to any speculation. On an episode of his "Let's Go" podcast, host Jim Gray asked Brady if he had any interest in coming out of retirement to play for the Jets.

Brady wasted little time shutting the question down with an emphatic response.

"No, no, no. Next question. You already know. I love being with you guys on Mondays and I love what we got going."

Tom Brady

Tom Brady is not going to be the next NY Jets quarterback

That's about as straight of an answer as you're going to get. The 15-time Pro Bowler seems to be happily enjoying his retirement, although it's still technically possible that he could return to play — at least within the next few weeks.

Brady's partial ownership stake in the Las Vegas Raiders doesn't become official until October (or longer), meaning that he still has a little more time if he wants to return to the NFL as a player. That doesn't seem to be in the cards, however.

Meanwhile, the Jets likely aren't looking to bark up that tree, either. In fact, The Athletic's Dianna Russini reported last week that the Jets had no plans to reach out to Brady or a host of other veteran quarterbacks, including Joe Flacco, Philip Rivers, Blake Bortles, or Ben Roethlisberger.

The Jets seem to be intent on sticking with third-year quarterback Zach Wilson, at least for the time being. Head coach Robert Saleh has already come out and said that, even when the Jets inevitably add a veteran QB, there will be no competition. This is Wilson's team.

Of course, plans could change if Wilson puts together a string of poor performances, but for now, the Jets have no plans to make a change at the quarterback position. Yes, that includes Brady.

Brady doesn't want the Jets. The Jets don't want Brady. Although it would be ironic (or poetic?) for Brady to come out of retirement to play for the team he tormented for so many years, don't expect it to happen.

This case is closed.