Tom Brady thinks he could still play at 48 — with a caveat

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Tom Brady thinks he could still play at 48 — with a caveat

Chris Mason · MassLive

Fri, Dec 12, 2025 ·

2 min read

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One of Tom Brady ’s old foes has made a stunning return to the NFL.

With the Colts desperate at quarterback, 44-year-old Philip Rivers has come out of retirement and could start against the Seahawks on Sunday. Rivers had been out of the league since the 2020 season before signing with Indianapolis ’ practice squad earlier this week.

So if Rivers is getting back in the saddle, could Brady still play?

On “The Herd,” Colin Cowherd asked Brady whether he felt he could still run an NFL offense at 48 years old.

“Yeah, I certainly could,” Brady said, before poking fun at himself. “But first of all, who retires and then unretires and then is ultimately going to retire again? Who does that? That’s ridiculous. For Philip to do that... but good for him. I’m happy he’s doing it.”

Then Brady got serious about whether he could still play, though with a caveat.

“I think the answer for me would be yes,” Brady said. “I’m not allowed to anymore because I’m a minority owner of the Raiders. So I can’t unretire. But I’m very excited to watch Philip play.”

With starting quarterback Daniel Jones out for the season with a torn Achilles, backup Anthony Richardson out with an orbital bone fracture, and third-stringer Riley Leonard battling a knee injury, Colts coach Shane Steichen gave Rivers a call earlier this week.

“I said, ‘What do you think?’” Steichen said. “He said, ‘Dadgummit, let’s freaking go.”

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