What is 'tampering with the QB'? Rumor about cause of Tom Brady-Gisele Bundchen divorce is slammed
MIAMI, FLORIDA: A ‘reckless’ theory has been doing the rounds of NFL suggests that the marital problems between Tom Brady and his supermodel wife Gisele Bundchen ‘blew up’ when the Miami Dolphins received heavy penalties for "flirtation with the quarterback".
After weeks of whispers that their relationship was over and weeks of conjecture about what might have caused their conflicts, the two have amicably ended things. Following a confidential settlement and 13 years of marriage, the couple announced their divorce on Friday, October 28.
On Friday, on Barstool's 'Pardon My Take', Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio stated, "There’s a theory in league circles, and I think I’m couching it properly, that the issues with Tom Brady and his wife blew up when the league announced the punishment of the Dolphins. Because of the flirtation with Brady, because she had, as the theory goes, no idea he was talking to the Dolphins." He added, “But I’m telling you, there are people who are employed by NFL teams who think that. And when you look at the timeline, that stuff came out, and it was the next day he started missing practices,” referring to Brady’s 11-day absence from the Buccaneers’ training camp.
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On August 2, the NFL suspended Dolphins owner Stephen Ross for the first six weeks of the 2022 season -- and hit him with a $1.5M fine -- for tampering with Brady and former Saints coach Sean Payton. “The Dolphins had impermissible communications with quarterback Tom Brady in 2019-20, while he was under contract to the New England Patriots,” the league said in a statement.
Brady was contacted by the Dolphins during the 2019 season and postseason, when he was with the New England Patriots, and also in 2021, when he was contracted with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Prior to the NFL's announcement, Florio had taken the lead on coverage of a Brady-Dolphins connection. Despite involving the most well-known athlete in the sport, the story did not receive much national attention.
A week-and-a-half later, it was announced out of the blue that Brady would be taking a leave from the team. Brady excused his absence due to “personal” reasons when he returned to the team on August 22. Many fans believed that Bundchen and Brady ended up fighting over Brady's decision to return to the NFL. Brady's decision to return to his beloved sport, however, had no bearing on their separation, a source told Daily Mail in late September.
After Brady and Bundchen confirmed their divorce on Friday, The Buccaneers star acknowledged that the decision was ‘tough’ and ‘difficult’ to make after ‘much contemplation'. "To dissolve a marriage is never easy... we have grown apart," Gisele, 42, stated. She expressed her ‘best wishes’ for Brady while confirming that they had ‘grown apart.’ "I'm grateful for the time we spent together, and I only have the finest wishes for Tom going forward," she stated. They both decided to continue raising their two children jointly as co-parents.