Tom Brady fired a perfect touchdown pass to Stefon Diggs in late March, reviving the endless speculation that the seven-time Super Bowl champion could still carve up an NFL defense. The 48-year-old has not played a professional snap since the 2022 season, but his performance at the Fanatics Flag Football Classic in Los Angeles turned heads. It certainly caught the attention of former NFL quarterback Matt Hasselbeck.
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During the recent interview with Tyler Dunne, Hasselbeck sees a direct parallel between Brady’s lingering itch to compete and another aging gunslinger’s recent return.
When Dunne asked him about Brady’s potential to still play at a high level, Hasselbeck pointed straight to the Indianapolis Colts’ late-season desperation move.
“Well, don’t blame Tom Brady. Blame Philip Rivers because Philip Rivers is 44 years old,” Hasselbeck said. “He’s just been coaching high school football. So the ball’s been in his hand a bunch.”
Rivers famously came out of retirement in December 2025, stepping off the couch to start for Indianapolis against the Seattle Seahawks. Despite a five-year layoff, Rivers went 18-of-27 passing and put the Colts in position to win before Seattle kicked a game-winning field goal.
“He got up off the couch,” Hasselbeck noted. “And he went into Seattle and basically played better than any other quarterback, with the exception of Matthew Stafford, played better than any other quarterback in the NFL against that Seahawks defense, and left the field with the lead.”
Rivers lacked mobility, but his mental processing remained elite. That gives Hasselbeck total confidence in Brady’s modern-day capability.
“Philip Rivers at 44, he can’t run. He could never run,” Hasselbeck said. “But he’s got all the other stuff and the stuff that matters, the leadership and the knowledge of how to protect himself and protect the team with pass pro and all that. And it’s all the stuff that Brady can still do. He could do better now than ever.”
Brady’s Flag Football Audition
Brady’s Founders FFC squad ultimately lost to both Team USA and Joe Burrow’s Wildcats FFC in the March 21 tournament. The NFL stars struggled against the reigning IFAF world champions, who dominated the event with their speed and mastery of sophisticated schemes.
“When I saw him playing the flag football thing and really, you know, the pros got smoked, which is not surprising because I’ve played against the flag guys and it’s a totally different game,” Hasselbeck said. “But he completely still has all the physical.”
Even in defeat, Brady looked the part. He evaded a free rusher on fourth-and-goal, threw a two-point conversion to Rob Gronkowski, and tossed a touchdown pass to Jalen Hurts on a trick play. To Hasselbeck, Brady physically defies logic.
“I would say he actually looks like he’s in better shape than he was when he came out of Michigan,” Hasselbeck said. “Like he throws it better. He moves better. He’s more handsome. Like he’s aging in reverse. Like it’s ridiculous.”
Brady has repeatedly shut down rumors of a return to tackle football, shifting his focus to his ownership stakes and broadcasting career. But as long as he keeps spinning tight spirals against elite athletes, his peers will keep wondering what if.
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“I don’t know what other elixirs he’s on, but we all need to be taking them because he looks amazing,” Hasselbeck said. “So no, it doesn’t surprise me at all that he felt competitive and had a scoreboard, and he was just in it. Because you miss that stuff, and he certainly can still throw the ball.”
If a 44-year-old Rivers can navigate a ravenous NFL pass rush after five years away, a 48-year-old Brady could absolutely still dissect a secondary.
