(Reuters). – Tom Brady will he, or won’t he?? The retirement debate was raging on Sunday when NFL fans began to wonder if their future Hall of Fame quarterback would have played the last game following Tampa Bay’s 3027 defeat to the Los Angeles Rams in an NFC divisional playoff.

It seemed that everybody was trying to make sense of Brady’s future even in the days preceding the Tampa meeting.

Bruce Arians, Buccaneers coach, said to The Tampa Bay Times that Brady’s absence would shock him. ESPN however reported that people close to Brady have told them that they don’t want Brady back for the next season.

He has stated that he would like to continue playing until at least 45 years old and gave no indication that he doesn’t intend to honour the last year of his contract that pays him $25.4million.

Brady’s performance in this season would suggest that he should return.

He was a part of all 17 NFL games, led by a record 5,316 passing yards and passed 43 touchdowns.

Brady answered reporters when asked about his future. He said that he didn’t think too much. “We’ll take it one day at a time and see what happens.”

Brady said he was feeling great and dismissed a question about whether the game would be his last.

I was thinking of winning. Brady stated, “That’s my mentality to try and win, give my teammates the best chance of winning.”

Brady’s competitive spirit, which helped him win seven Super Bowl rings, and one last year with Tampa was clearly on display as he engineered an end-of-the-round fight against the Rams.

After trailing by 27-3, the Buccaneers rallied for a tie with 42 seconds to spare on a Leonard Fournette touchdown run of nine yards.

Matthew Stafford, Rams’ quarterback, had enough time to get the ball in Tampa territory. Matt Gay scored a 30-yard field goal.

The Rams defeated the San Francisco 49ers to reach the title game of the conference.