Chicago Bears chairman George McCaskey revealed details about negotiations with seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady in 2020.
Brady, who ended up signing with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after 20 seasons with the New England Patriots, recently revealed that he was "seriously considering" the Bears during his free agency.
“Well, that seems like ancient history at this point,” said McCaskey, the grandson of late Bears founder, owner, player and coach, Pro Football Hall of Famer George Halas Sr., via ESPN. “I do remember we were interested in pursuing him. It didn’t work out for us. Worked out great for him in Tampa.”
"Anytime you're in a situation like that you're not putting all of your eggs in one basket," he added. "You're looking at alternatives. It's the same in free agency, it's the same in the draft. If the person you're targeting isn't available, you want to make sure that you've done your due diligence on all other options. So that was one option that we were looking at."
Brady had previously revealed that an unnamed NFL franchise surprisingly decided to go with another quarterback during his free agency before he ended up signing with the Buccaneers during an appearance on The Shop: Uninterrupted on HBO in 2021 and his recent mentioning of the Bears. The future Hall of Famer who now works as the lead NFL analyst for FOX Sports, discussed the "18 criteria" he had for the team he planned to sign with at the time while broadcasting the September 29 game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Buccaneers.
Brady said he factored salary, weather, facilities and new teammates and acknowledged that Chicago made a strong pitch during his decision.
“Chicago was a team, and I’ve never told that story before, they were very stealth in their recruitment,” Brady said. “I was seriously considering, but in the end, it came down to Tampa. And it was close to my son Jack, I loved Bruce Arians and the role that he played in offense, and ultimately the great players like Mike Evans and Chris Godwin that I’m still out there watching today.”
Brady, widely regarded as the greatest quarterback of all-time, would've provided the Bears with stability at the position they've struggled to fill for decades. Chicago has started eight different quarterbacks and drafted two in the first round since 2020.
Brady spent his final three seasons with the Buccaneers, who had a franchise-record 13-win season in 2021 and won back-to-back NFC South Division titles.