Tom Brady leaves door wide open for surprise NFL return under one condition

Tom Brady is retired. And from all we expected, this time it was for good. We saw the greatest quarterback of all time unretire once from the NFL but, after one last ride with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, it seemed like that was really it.

But maybe not... you know, if the right things break his way.

Brady recently appeared on an episode of DeepCut with TikTok star VicBlends. And Vic, who gives haircuts as he interviews people, this time the seven-time Super Bowl champion in the barber's chair. And in doing so, he brought up the idea of teams like the San Francisco 49ers, New England Patriots or even Las Vegas Raiders suffering an injury late in the season and calling on Brady.

Would the QB answer the phone and consider a return?

Tom Brady would be open to NFL return, if the league will let him

Brady opened the door to a potential return as he said he would always be in shape and able to throw the football. However, his openness to a return came with a huge caveat: If the NFL lets him.

For about a year now, Tom Brady has been looking into joining an ownership group in the NFL, specifically with the Raiders. He's hit some snags in that process, but he's still clearly interested in that. And as such, that could substantially complicate the possibility of him unretiring (again) and returning the league.

Considering the fact that Brady will be 47 years old by the time Week 1 is underway, it's incredible that he can mention the idea of a return and no one bats an eye. Of course, he played in the NFL for so long and so successfully -- longer than any reasonable person would've ever suspected -- so he kind of earned the benefit of that doubt.

Even still, it seems quite unlikely that a Tom Brady return is actually going to happen. It's great content but, at the end of the day, the fact that he mentioned the ownership snag only confirms that remains a huge focus for him in his post-playing career. So it's exponentially more likely that we'll see Brady in the NFL in that capacity than it is to see him put on a helmet once again.