At the start of NFL Free Agency, all the buzz was about the great class of quarterbacks that were hitting the market.
Two names that stood out were Tom Brady and Philip Rivers.
Fast-Foward three weeks and both men have contracts with new teams.
Brady signed a two year, $50 million dollar deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Rivers signed a one year, $25 million dollar deal to join the Indianapolis Colts.
Peter King, of NBC Sports, reported that Tom Brady was interested in joining the Colts.
Though on Wednesday, Colts Head Coach Frank Reich revealed that the Colts did their research and decided that Rivers was ultimately a better fit for the team.
#Colts heavily scouted @TomBrady this off-season before signing the younger Philip Rivers.
Head coach Frank Reich: “The guy is incredible. I think he’s still playing at a super, super high level. We know he’s the best of all time for a reason.”https://t.co/vW74qTp9JF pic.twitter.com/KSwxybMlgQ
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) April 1, 2020
Looking Back
Tom Brady’s resume speaks for itself.
Five-time super bowl champion, two-time Super Bowl MVP and two-time league MVP.
He has become one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.
Though his 2019 season was not his greatest.
As in his age 42 season he threw for over 4,000 yards while totaling only 24 touchdowns and six interceptions.
He also suffered a rare early playoff exit as the Patriots lost to the Tennesee Titans in the Wild Card round.
On the other side, Philip Rivers had a down year as he threw 20 interceptions in his 2019 campaign.
His Chargers also missed the playoffs.
Rivers’ career resume is impressive as he has been voted to eight Pro Bowls, but he is missing one big factor, a ring.
Looking Ahead
As both quarterbacks are moving to new teams, the projections and odds have already come out.
The Buccaneers have the fifth-best odds to win the Super Bowl after the addition of Tom Brady.
The Colts hold the eleventh best odds with the Philip Rivers joining the team.
Pro Football Focus has also put out their early projections for starting quarterbacks next season and they may show what impact will be made on the pair of veteran’s new teams.
PFF projects Tom Brady to lead the league in passing yards it looks like pic.twitter.com/2WLkV3EmjA
— Shaun Newkirk (@Shauncore) April 1, 2020
The projections show quite the disparity between the two.
Brady is projected to lead the league in passing yards and passing attempts.
This may be in part to the multitude of weapons he has around him.
Armed with Pro Bowl wide receivers Chris Godwin and Mike Evans, as well as tight end O.J. Howard, the Bucs should be able to throw the football.
Rivers’ projections show both improvement and decline from last year.
His passing yards drop by 900 yards with his touchdowns dropping by 2.
He is projected to throw fewer interceptions and have fewer fumbles, which is one of his big questions going into next year.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, Tom Brady may have found his best-case scenario in Tampa Bay.
It remains to be seen what type of impact Philip Rivers will have in Indianapolis, but the Colts got the man they wanted.
That should instill hope even if he wasn’t viewed as the best option.
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