Tom Brady spent 40 days in retirement before he decided the whole thing wasn’t for him. Brady announced on Sunday evening that he has changed his mind on ending his NFL career, and that when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers take the field this fall, he’ll be their starting quarterback, marking his 23rd season in the league.
No one is more bummed out about this, I presume, than the person who dropped more than $500,000 on the football from Brady’s “final” touchdown pass. Brady threw a pass to Mike Evans during the Bucs’ playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams, and according to the auction site Lelands, the ball was up for sale until Saturday night at 10 p.m.
Per Lelands, the ball went for $518,628, which is a lot of money for what is now just a pretty run-of-the-mill game-used football. Brady threw it to Evans late in the fourth quarter of the Rams game, and the Pro Bowl receiver celebrated by throwing it into the crowd.
Now, it is entirely possible that this remains the final touchdown pass that Brady ever throws — maybe he gets hurt or somehow losing his starting job in training camp — but in all likelihood, this is merely a nice addition to that person’s collection of sports memorabilia for a massive price.