Tom Brady may not be playing in the Super Bowl, but he remains a topic of discussion as the New England Patriots prepare to face the Seattle Seahawks this Sunday.
Brady raised eyebrows this week as he elected not to pledge his support for the Patriots in this weekend's NFL season finale at Levi's Stadium.
The former Patriots quarterback spent 20 seasons in Foxboro, where he led the franchise to six Super Bowl championships alongside Bill Belichick to forge one of the league's greatest dynasties.
"I don't have a dog in the fight in this one," Brady said on the 'Let's Go!' Sirius XM podcast with Jim Gray.
"May the best team win."
Brady left the Patriots at the end of the 2019 season when he signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he won a seventh Super Bowl ring in his first season.
It would prompt the beginning of a Patriots rebuild, which would uncover its long-term answer at quarterback last year when the Patriots drafted Drake Maye with the third overall pick.
Maye has since played his way into surprise MVP contention as he steered Mike Vrabel's Patriots back to the Super Bowl as AFC East champions.
"Personally it makes me sick," said Patriots linebacker Robert Spillane of Brady's comments on Thursday.
"He is, and he has a dog in the fight. For him to say that, it is what it is. But, at the end of the day, he's an owner of the Las Vegas Raiders now. So he has to do what's best for him."
Brady's former right-hand man Rob Gronkowski opposed his old friend on Wednesday as he welcomed a return to Super Bowl relevance for the Patriots.
"He probably wants to be the quarterback," Gronkowski said on Kay Adams' 'Up & Adams'.
"He's that competitive. He probably wants to be the guy in the Super Bowl right now."
Gronkowski had served as Brady's most trusted target during their time together in New England, winning three Super Bowls at Gillette Stadium before reuniting with the league's greatest-ever player to clinch a fourth ring in Tampa Bay.
"I'm rooting for the Patriots," Gronkowski added. "What's great about the Patriots being in the Super Bowl is that it shows, it's bringing back just how dominant the Patriots are.
"And there's a lot of fans out there that are mad that the Patriots are back in the Super Bowl, which is great for us. Because that brings back they're mad because of how many times we won."
Brady's comments have prompted a number of disgruntled former Patriots to take aim at the 48-year-old, including two-time Super Bowl champion Vince Wilfork.
"That's b*******, Tom," said Wilfork on Boston radio station WEEI. "This ain't political. It ain't political, what it is. Raiders ain't in it. Say what it is, what you see.
"At the end of the day, if you're a Patriot for life, you know what it is. Don't give me that political b*******. That just what it is. If you don't think we're gonna win, just pick Seattle then. Don't straddle the fence."
Brady is a minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders, who are expected to appoint Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak as their new head coach following the Super Bowl.
Watch the New England Patriots against the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl 60 at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California on Sunday February 8, with coverage under way at 10pm live on Your Site NFL ahead of kick-off at approximately 11.30pm
