Tom Brady claims he is "unlikely" to retire, after New England's defeat by the Tennessee Titans in a National Football League wild card playoff game.
Winner of six Super Bowls with the Patriots, the 42-year-old quarterback is a free agent, and speculation has been rife over he would play next year and, if so, where.
Brady would not get drawn too much into speculation, but when pressed repeatedly at a post-game press conference, he offered at least a clue as to his future.
"I would say it’s pretty unlikely," he said of the possibility of retiring.
"I don't want to get too much into the future - I don't know what's going to happen. No-one needs to make choices at this point.
"I love playing football, love playing for this team. I don’t know what it looks like moving forward."
The Titans upset the Super Bowl champions 20-13 on a compelling first day of the postseason.
The Houston Texans earlier defeated the Buffalo Bills 22-19 in an overtime classic in Houston in the other AFC wild card contest.
But Brady was the story of the day, after he was unable to pull off yet another miracle. His final pass in the dying seconds was intercepted by former teammate Logan Ryan, who breezed into the endzone to clinch a victory for the visitors.
“We were locked in,” said Tennessee running back Derrick Henry, who was virtually unstoppable on his 26th birthday.
“Great win, against a great team in a hostile environment.”
Tennessee had been 9-7 in the regular season and the Patriots 12-4.
The Patriots were left to rue their surprise home loss to the Miami Dolphins on the final day of the regular season, when a win would have earned them a bye this weekend.
The Titans reward is a visit to the Baltimore Ravens in the division round next weekend.
Reuters
