Tom Brady available as a free agent and some teams without quarterbacks, but since Brady announced his official retirement it’s unlikely he’ll play again. JJ Watt is another player who, despite being officially retired, also appeared as available.
The market is still open for the upcoming 2023 season, but it is not necessary for retired players to return to action to replace other players available in the free agency, much less when they are ‘old’ players.
Several NFL teams need quarterbacks to go far, Tom Brady could be an option, but they know that in order for him to show all his talent the franchise will need to build a strong offensive and defensive line.
The reason why Tom Brady and JJ Watt are still available in the free agency
Tom Brady is available due to a technicality, in the NFL there is something called ‘dummy years’ which means void years for salary cap, in this case Brady had a one dummy year to spread his $35.1m cap number for 2023 and by not making his contract with the Bucs expired leaving him as a free agent.
JJ Watt is also going through a similar situation, his contract with the Cardinals expired in 2023 but he had already announced his retirement in December 2022. Watt never won a Super Bowl but was considered one of the best defensive ends of the 21st century.
Other notable players who have retired and will not be available in the 2023 NFL season are A.J. Green who played 12 years with Bengals and Arizona Cardinals and Gerald McCoy who also played 12 years with the Bucs, Carolina and Raiders.