Hey, as long as he doesn’t face Eli Manning on the campaign trail, why not?
Thursday morning at 7:00 a.m., NBC’s Mike Florio uploaded an article on his Pro Football Talk site that set D.C. tongues wagging: “Is Tom Brady Laying the Foundation for a Presidential Run?”
Because, on the surface, the latest career moves of the NFL’s GOAT don’t make a lot of sense. Why subject yourself to the spectacle of a nationwide comedy roast? Why lower yourself to play-fighting in the WWE? Why lock yourself into a time-consuming, decade-long TV commitment with one of America’s major networks? Why would one of pro sports’ biggest health freaks star in Pizza Hut commercials?
Until you realize that’s exactly what Donald Trump did before he ran for president in 2015.
Trump starred in a Comedy Central roast in 2011, proving he’s self-aware enough — and good-natured enough — to laugh at himself. Trump joined the WWE (and shaved Vince McMahon’s head at WrestleMania 23). Trump entered America’s living rooms as the star of The Apprentice for 11 years on NBC. Trump also appeared in Pizza Hut commercials.
And just like Donald Trump was in 2015, Tom Brady is a mainstream American celebrity with a well-earned reputation as a winner.
Is Tom Brady's WWE flirtation a mid-life crisis run amok, or is it the product of something far more calculated? https://t.co/1s2Ry2hJrf
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) July 23, 2026
Could Tom Brady be eyeing the White House?
— Radar Online (@radar_online) July 23, 2026
The NFL legend's rumored WWE move has sparked fresh speculation about a possible future in politics, with NFL insider Mike Florio suggesting the wrestling world could help Brady build an even broader fan base:
https://t.co/AV1L2PBF4B pic.twitter.com/73LNe0BtR7
Tom Brady's mid-life crisis could see him run for PRESIDENT, says NFL insider - who claims football great once nearly stood against Trump https://t.co/t5ni7YQRSL
— Daily Mail Sport (@MailSport) July 23, 2026
Mike Florio brings an unusual pedigree to NBC Sports: He has a metallurgical engineering degree from Carnegie Mellon University and was a practicing labor lawyer, before his website “hobby” took off. He’s at his best examining legal issues — and connecting dots that traditional sportswriters often overlook.
One of which is that Brady’s (now-incarcerated) ex-business partner, Sam Bankman-Fried, urged Brady to challenge Trump for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024 — and actually conducted independent polling to test TB12’s candidacy.
From Florio’s Pro Football Talk:
Brady’s play could be to lay the foundation for a presidential run.
[…]
It also would fit with something that one of Brady’s former business partners believed.
The word “former” applies not because Brady and the former partner had a falling out but because the former partner currently is in prison. Before the house of cards known as FTX collapsed, founder Sam Bankman-Fried reportedly was trying to get Brady to run for the Republican nomination in 2024, against the current president. It supposedly went far enough to get Bankman-Fried to ask his team to conduct polling on the views of Americans regarding Brady as a presidential candidate.
Why spin your wheels in the House or the Senate when you can leverage fame and notoriety into an instant political base? Brady looks good (regardless of whether there are any pharmaceutical, of [sic] follicular, enhancements), he speaks better than he used to, he’s rich and getting richer all the time. He craves competition (and some would say attention), which could make the political arena the perfect spot for the Man in the Arena.
For most of his playing career, Brady meticulously avoided PR missteps, public embarrassments, and social media SNAFUs that bedeviled so many of his athletic contemporaries, including Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, Lance Armstrong, Kobe Bryant, Hulk Hogan, Floyd Mayweather, and Barry Bonds. His TB12 brand was synonymous with structure, discipline, and a blinders-on, laser-like focus on winning.
Which is why Brady’s post-career excursions have raised so many eyebrows.
"This to me, is one of the great downfalls of an icon with Tom Brady. The way he is acting post-retirement, it's a legacy that is being lame-ifyed..." - @stoolpresidente https://t.co/aA5hDkfw1P pic.twitter.com/xfW3txmDoY
— Wake Up Barstool (@wakeupbarstool) July 20, 2026
One theory is that Brady is simply having fun (and making money). Another is that this is a midlife crisis.
But there’s a third option that’s far more consistent with Brady’s character, values, and history: None of this is by accident — and everything is 100% calculated and deliberate.
There are two ways of looking at this. One, it’s a sort of bizarre mid-life crisis for Tom Brady. It’s an exercise in ego, can’t get enough, got to do more, got to do more, got to do more.
There’s also a chance it is part of a broader plan: Is Tom Brady trying to cozy up to the pro wrestling base when it comes time to run for office?
[…]
We know how the world is now. You don’t have to be a career politician. You don’t have to have any experience running anything. Brady at least has experience in business, experience in sports, life experiences, name recognition.
Maybe that’s the play.
Donald Trump has described Brady as “a great friend of mine.” A red MAGA hat was spotted in Brady’s NFL locker. He looks like a movie star, has close personal relationships with plenty of billionaires, and his leadership credentials are off-the-charts.
Best of all, he’s a winner. He’s the greatest winner in the history of America’s most popular sport.
From TB12 to POTUS48? Stranger things have happened.
As of today, JD Vance is in the driver’s seat for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination. That’s because he’s the sitting vice president. (It’s the political equivalent of being a #1 overall NFL draft pick.) Besides, Vance is talented and gifted; his future in the party seems secure. Assuming he can mend fences with pro-Israel Republicans (and stave off a challenge from Marco Rubio), the GOP nomination is still his for the taking.
But 25 years ago, the New England Patriots’ former #1 overall NFL draft pick — a talented, gifted quarterback named Drew Bledsoe — probably thought his future was secure, too.
And then came Tom Brady.
One Last Thing: 2026 will reach a crescendo with the midterm elections. Nothing less than the fate of the America First movement teeters in the balance.
Never before have the political battle lines been so clearly defined. Win or lose, 2026 will transform our country.
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