A (Ridiculous) Proposal: Tom Brady, in the NFL, at Age 70…On the Raiders

Still, it’s football. Anything can happen. And what sometimes happens is, well, the Raiders. It’s been this way since the Oakland days, the Los Angeles days, the Oakland 2.0 days, and there’s no reason it can’t be that way now, in the nascent Las Vegas Raiders days.  

Joining the Raiders is a perfectly normal part of the aging process, like taking up fly fishing, tucking a T-shirt into shorts, or reading (or writing!) a sports column in the newspaper.

Football fans know the “Raider Epilogue” is a well-trodden path for NFL superstars. The greatest receiver ever, Jerry Rice, left the 49ers and crossed the Bay to be a Raider, where he played from age 39 until 41.

Ronnie Lott

made a similar move, from early scarlet and gold to late career silver and black. Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson wound it down with the Raiders. Bill Romanowski, too. Rod Woodson finished as a Raider. So did Jason Witten, who just retired at age 38. 

For quarterbacks, the Raiders can be a career-extending revival. Jim Plunkett was thought to be done in his early 30s when he was reborn with the Raiders, winning two Super Bowls. The same nearly happened to Rich Gannon, who drove the Raiders to the title game at age 37. Two veteran quarterbacks who led the New York Giants to Super Bowls—Jeff Hostetler and Kerry Collins—did spins with the Raiders, too. 

Like a steakhouse that lights the grill at 3:45 p.m., the Raiders love them some old fellas. It’s been this way since the days of Raider maestro Al Davis, a wily young guy who turned into a wily older guy. Davis loved nothing more than a marquee veteran who was a little knocked around, maybe predicted to be on the downslope of his performance—Davis thought some silver and black swagger could be restorative. There was something almost romantic about it, like taking a vintage sports car out for a final spin. 

(Quick sidebar: Have you seen the new ESPN documentary “Al Davis vs. the NFL” in which they use “deep fake” video renderings to reproduce commentary from late Davis and NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle? It’s quite good—and extremely strange!)

Brady, of course, would be a different sort of Raider hire. He would not be coming to the Raiders to write a redemptive chapter. He’s the most decorated quarterback in league history. He has twice as many Super Bowl rings (six) as the Raiders franchise (three), and he could get his seventh on Sunday. He’s already the GOAT, full stop. 

To put it in Vegas terms: he’s playing with the house’s money. 

But Brady’s shown no indication of wanting to quit. The other day, he said he would “definitely” consider playing past age 45. People used to laugh at such Jack LaLanne confidence from Brady—quarterback is not a lifetime appointment—but not anymore. The man is about to play in his 10th Super Bowl, and he’s doing it in his first season with a brand new team. 

Who says he’s not going to keep on going and going? (Besides the entire history of football.)

Remember: There was a half a minute last winter when people thought the Raiders might have a real shot at Brady. The quarterback exchanged brief pleasantries with Raiders owner Mark Davis at a UFC fight and the internet went bonkers.  

Again, I suspect he stays in Tampa for a good while. There’s really no point for Brady to join the Raiders any time soon. If he showed up any time in the next few seasons, he wouldn’t even be the oldest Raider ever. That honor goes, of course, to QB/K George Blanda, who played until 48—mostly as a kicker, but still throwing the occasional pass.

(Fun George Blanda fact: He retired first in 1959, at the sprightly age of 31! Then he un-retired…and played another 16 seasons.)

Maybe Brady doesn’t get to the Raiders until he’s like 65 or 70. He’s gone fully gray by then. He’s added a grizzly, silvery beard, a bit of a Ken Stabler homage.

If you’re wondering: yes, he can wear 12. That number will forever be associated with the Raider legend Stabler, and deservedly so, but 12 is still active. Al Davis was wary of retiring numbers—he felt the practice risked excluding the contributions of important players, and so the Raiders are one of a handful of NFL teams that hasn’t retired a set of digits. Las Vegas wide receiver Zay Jones currently wears 12. Rich Gannon wore 12. Todd Marinovich wore 12. 

TB12 will be able to be TB12. At age 55, or 75, whatever he chooses. 

Look, I’m not saying it’s going to happen. But I’m not saying it’s not going to happen, either. Brady is the greatest quarterback to ever play football, and he wants to keep playing the game that he loves. If you play football long enough, the road eventually leads to the Raiders. 

And then, at age 80, Tom Brady joins the Knicks.

Write to Jason Gay at Jason.Gay@wsj.com