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Robert Kraft Wants Tom Brady to Retire With the Patriots

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  • Patriots owner Robert Kraft says he would give Tom Brady a one-day contract so he could retire with the New England Patriots.
  • Brady has said he's retiring from the NFL "for good" this time.
  • The Patriots drafted Brady in the sixth round in 2000. He won six Super Bowls with them.

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft wants Tom Brady to re-sign with the team for one day so that he can officially end his legendary career with the franchise that drafted him 23 years ago.

"We will do everything in our power to bring him back, have him sign off as a Patriot," Kraft said in an interview with CNN on Thursday.

Brady, widely considered the greatest quarterback in National Football League history, announced his retirement Wednesday after 23 seasons. He had previously said he would retire last year, but went on to play one more season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

This time, Brady said in a video posted to Twitter that his retirement would be "for good." The seven-time Super Bowl champion is going out after the first losing season in his record-breaking career.

"Not only do I want it, our fans are clamoring for it," Kraft said. "To us, he is always has been and always will be a Patriot.

A representative for Brady didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

The 45-year-old Brady started his NFL career in 2000 as a sixth-round draft pick with the Patriots. He ended up leading them to six Super Bowl titles while playing for them until 2019. He left for the Buccaneers in 2020 and won a seventh title.

Last year, when Brady retired for the first time, he thanked the Buccaneers and their head coach at the time, Bruce Arians, but not the Patriots or coach Bill Belichick. Eventually, he tweeted: "Thank you, Patriots Nation. "I'm beyond grateful. Love you all."

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