Tom Brady left the Patriots after the 2019 season but new details are still emerging about how bad things got between him and Bill Belichick that led to the legendary quarterback’s exit.
While much of these details have been revealed over the years by ESPN reporters including Seth Wickersham and Don Van Natta Jr., those stories cited mostly anonymous sources.
Now, Brady has gone on the record in the new 10-episode Apple+ docu-series, “The Dynasty,” which debuts on Friday.
“Me and coach Belichick, we did what we loved and competed for 20 years together,” Brady said in the documentary, as covered by The Athletic. “But I wasn’t going to sign another contract (in New England) even if I wanted to play until (I was) 50. Based on how things had gone, I wasn’t going to sign up for more of it.”
According to the outlet’s review of the documentary, Brady’s former teammates were candid about how clear the strain was between the quarterback and head coach.
Rob Gronkowski said that he didn’t want to leave his car and go into work when he got to the parking lot at the team facility, and former receiver Wes Welker analogized Brady to an abused dog in his service to Belichick.
“It was brutal,” former special teams ace Matthew Slater said in the series.
Brady and Patriots owner Robert Kraft were described in the review as being “more blunt than usual” in the documentary.
Brady and Belichick won six Super Bowl championships together, and Brady won an additional title in his first season in Tampa Bay in 2020-21.
Belichick had previously won two Super Bowls as defensive coordinator on Bill Parcells’ Giants teams.
Belichick and the Patriots parted ways after 24 seasons together after this past season.