Welp, I Guess I’m a Bucs Fan Now

Weird things are happening.

If someone had ever suggested that I might one day consider myself a Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan, I would have spit out my milk quicker than the lady in the .GIF. But here we are. The world is on fire, and so is the NFL offseason.

Now, I find myself questioning whether I can be both a Patriots and a Buccaneers fan. I LOVE the Patriots. Always have. But my love for Tom Brady runs deep. VERY deep. This man has brought me some of my most joyous moments in life (obligatory disclaimer: aside from the birth of my kids and my wedding day). There's no other player in any sport that, to me, eclipses the love of your team. That's how special of a player this guy is.

I guess I'd have to say I realized that I might be a potential Bucs fan the moment I heard the news of Rob Gronkowski's trade and felt some level of joy. Another head-scratcher. My entire life I've been a Patriots die-hard. I was there during the very, very lean years when the games used to get blacked out on TV because they couldn't sell out the games. It was not a great time to be a Pats fan. So how in the world could I possibly feel a ping of joy after hearing that Gronk was heading to Tampa Bay?

I'll tell you why.

It's going to be fun. They're getting the band back together. It's being told you have ONE final chance to hang out with your college buddies before you have to graduate and start in the real world.

I just don't get the Patriots fans that are playing the bandwagon card on this one? To me, jumping on a bandwagon is when you start only liking the winning teams. With that logic, I should be a Chiefs fan. Guess what? I'm not.

I am still a huge Patriots fan, but I would think that any Patriots fan would completely understand the desire to watch just one more season with Tommy Terrific and Gronk. Even if it's not happening on Route 1 in Foxboro, I'd rather see Gronk play with Brady in Tampa Bay than not see him play at all.

C'mon, are you telling me that watching those Tampa Bay games won't be fun? That's nonsense. Of course they will be. It's like having a little secondary baby brother team to cheer on. This is going to be a blast, guys. Just enjoy the ride. It won't be long before we won't have the privilege of watching the GOAT play football at all, ever again. Now THAT will be a sad Sunday.

And who knows? It might turn out that none of this matters, anyway. Who can guarantee that there will even be a football season? Then what? A 44-year-old TB12 that hasn't played since the Patriots lost to the Titans will make a comeback with a guy that hasn't played since the Patriots beat the Rams. That's tough to envision. Brady and Gronk just may have played their final NFL games while still with the Patriots after all.