For Tom Brady, age is just a number.
The 48-year-old, who officially retired from the NFL in 2023 after 23 seasons, shared that he'd have no issues if he were to decide to take the field again.
“I’d whoop ass right now,” he told Shaquille O’Neal and Adam Lefkoe on The Big Podcast with Shaq on Dec. 17. “I could go out there and play. Give me a month, I mean, I could go play with anybody.”
The seven-time Super Bowl winner, who played 20 seasons for the New England Patriots before concluding his career with three seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, added that he "took care of my body great" and "I could do it all."
However, he added that he was ready to slow down.
“What I wouldn’t want to do is make the commitment to play," Tom noted. "It’s like basketball season, do you really want to make the commitment to playing 82 games? That takes a lot of training and it’s like I don’t want to do that anymore.”
Plus, if the now-broadcaster were to unretire, it would technically be his second time doing so. In February 2022, he announced he would retire before deciding weeks later he would actually be returning for another season, sharing that he knew he simply wasn't ready to be done.
"At that point, I decided to talk with my family and I said, 'I think I wanna do this one more time if you guys will support that,'" he told Complex in April 2022. "And my wife was so supportive of it and she said, 'Look, I want you to be happy. I want you to enjoy it and go out there and win.'"
Tom—who divorced wife Gisele Bündchen in October 2022—added, "Ultimately, that’s why I came back, to win. There’s only one reason to play for me at this point in my career. And that’s to win."
However, he shared at the time that while he was still eager to play, age 50 was where he would definitely set his limit.
"I do think I could play till 50. But I don’t think I will just because I know the commitment that it takes," he explained at the time. "I’m away from my 14-year-old son and my 12-year-old son and my nine-year-old daughter. And they deserve my time and energy and they’re getting older."
As Tom—who is dad to Benjamin, 16, and Vivian, 13, with Gisele, as well as Jack, 18, with ex Bridget Moynahan—put it, "I wanna win on the field, but I wanna win off the field."
For more on how Tom has been winning post-retirement, read on.
Sept. 10, 2023
The athlete appears with his kids Jack, Ben and Vivian as he is honored by the New England Patriots at halftime during their home opener at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
August 2, 2023
The five-time Super Bowl MVP takes a walk on the wild side, posting pics from his safari adventure.
July 23, 2023
Following Brady's divorce from Gisele Bündchen, the former quarterback was spotted with supermodel Irina Shayk.
July 4, 2023
The Super Bowl MVP joins a host of other A-listers at Michael Rubin's annual Hamptons white party.
June 11, 2023
Brady got VIP seating next to Novak Djokovic's wife as he watched the tennis champ compete at the French Open in Paris.
June 5, 2023
The former New England Patriots QB spent a day at Disneyland with his kids Benjamin and Vivian.
May 22, 2023
Perhaps missing the spotlight, Brady appeared on the "Hertz Let's Go Show", a fictional daytime talk show which was part of a series of digital ads.
Apr. 22, 2023
The seven-time Super Bowl champion visits UCLA to cheer on his niece Maya during her softball game.
Apr. 20, 2023
Brady speaks about his entrepreneurial experiences at the eMerge Americas conference in Miami.
Mar. 28, 2023
The retired football star enjoyed a beach day with his kids and some of his former teammates.
Mar. 23, 2023
Brady jumped back into the world of sports by acquiring an ownership interest in the WNBA's Las Vegas Aces.
Feb. 20, 2023
While on a ski vacation with his kids, the athlete posted a photo of himself and his son Jack twinning in all-black.
Feb. 6, 2023
Just a few days later, Brady kicked off his retirement with an underwear thirst trap.
Feb. 1, 2023
Quarterback Tom Brady announced his retirement from the NFL by posting an emotional video on social media.