NFL quarterback Tom Brady has spoken openly in the past about his marriage to Gisele Bündchen and the struggles they’ve faced regarding his job, which requires so much time away from his family. Rumors that the couple is headed for divorce have spread over the past few months, as Brady’s decision to return to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for one more season reportedly caused a rift so big that his wife is rumored to have moved out and hired a divorce lawyer. The quarterback seemed to hint at his situation on his podcast, when he said it’s hard to find that work/life balance when you’re used to doing things a specific way.
The subject of trying to balance the competitive edge with the responsibilities of a family came up on the QB’s podcast Let’s Go, amid the Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen split rumors. The former New England Patriot said that despite his intentions to spend more time on other things during the season, the work takes over, to the point that he thinks of it as similar to being in the military. Brady said:
I almost look at a football season like you're going away on deployment for the military. And it's like, 'Man, here I go again.' … The reality is you can really only be authentic to yourself, right? Whatever you may say, 'Ah, man, I want to, you know, make sure I spend a little more time doing this during the season.' The reality is when it comes down to it, your competitiveness takes over, and as much as you want to have this playful balance with the work balance, you're going to end up doing exactly what you've always done, which is why you are who you are. You’re gonna go, ‘How the fuck do I get it done?’
It sounds like Tom Brady wants to be better at balancing football with his personal life, but he just is who he is, for better or worse. For 22 years, the pro athlete has maintained his ranking as arguably the best quarterback to ever play the game, in part by remaining laser-focused on his job in a way that has brought him an overwhelming amount of success. I doubt that’s an easy formula to change for any reason, even if he did want to.
Back in 2020, the seven-time Super Bowl champion spoke to Howard Stern about a rough patch in years past, when he said Gisele Bündchen was not satisfied in their marriage. He said he’d been forced to make a change, because she wanted him to contribute to things around the house and taking care of the kids. Tom Brady told Stern at the time:
I had to make a big transition in my life to say, I can't do all the things that I wanted to do for football like I used to. I gotta take care of things in my family because my family- the situation wasn't great. She wasn't satisfied with our marriage. So I needed to make a change in that. Her point was, 'Well, yeah, of course this works for you. It all works for you. But it doesn't work for me.'
From the sounds of his latest podcast, and saying that “you’re going to end up doing exactly what you’ve always done,” it’s not a far leap to think the changes he made four or five years ago haven’t held up.
Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen have been married since 2009 and have two children together, as well as Brady’s son with ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan. While they’ve had their ups and downs over the years like any marriage, it seemed to be Brady’s decision to call off his retirement that has exacerbated their current issues. Bündchen has not attended any of her husband’s games this season, which is uncharacteristic for the model.
We can only wait to see what the rest of the NFL season brings for Tom Brady and his family. As fans of the football player will be able to see him on the field with the Bucs, they can also catch him on the big screen, when his upcoming movie 80 for Brady hits theaters on February 3, 2023.
