Julian Edelman seemingly dejected as Tom Brady unretires alongside Rob Gronkowski while ex-Patriots WR misses special football event

By Chaitanya Prakash

Modified Sep 17, 2025 07:10 GMT

NCAA Basketball: North Carolina at Syracuse - Source: Imagn — Julian Edelman seemingly dejected as Tom Brady unretires alongside Rob Gronkowski while ex-Patriots WR misses special football event - Source: Imagn

NFL legend Tom Brady is coming out of retirement, to a degree, to play in a one-off tournament next year. The seven-time Super Bowl winner and other football stars will participate in a flag football tournament in Saudi Arabia.

Brady announced on Monday that he is collaborating with Fanatics, Fox Sports, and OBB Media for the Fanatics Flag Football Classic in March. He will be joined by Saquon Barkley, CeeDee Lamb, Christian McCaffrey, and Rob Gronkowski, among others.

However, Brady's former New England Patriots teammate, Julian Edelman, won't be in Saudi Arabia. Edelman shared a popular meme on X to showcase his disappointment.

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The tournament is reportedly being held under Olympic-style flag football rules. It will be played on a 50-yard field with two 10-yard end zones and two 20-minute halves.

Tom Brady shares excitement about opportunity to play competitive football again

This will be the first time Tom Brady plays a competitive football game since announcing his retirement in 2023. The Patriots icon shared his excitement for the tournament:

"Couldn’t be more excited to return to the field, get the competitive juices flowing alongside some of the game’s brightest stars and iconic legends, and bring a truly unique global sports event to fans everywhere during Riyadh Season.

"It’s awesome to be able to showcase the sport on such a global stage while joining together so many incredibly skilled athletes."

Brady spent more than two decades in the NFL, establishing himself as one of the greatest players in the game. He has the opportunity to take the game's popularity to another level with his latest collaboration.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

Know More

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash