• The NFL offseason got off to a hot start on Monday.
  • Longtime New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is set to become a free agent for the first time in his career, and as things stand, three teams look like they’re in the running for the future Hall of Famer.
  • The most likely outcome has Brady staying in New England or jumping to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or Los Angeles Chargers for the final years of his career.
  • Beyond those three teams, the market for Brady looks thin.
  • Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Tom Brady is set to become a free agent for the first time in his 20 years in the NFL.

After two decades with the New England Patriots, Brady will officially be free to sign wherever he chooses on Wednesday.

But while Brady will be remembered as the greatest quarterback to ever play the game once he has retired, as things stand, it looks as though just three teams are really racing to bring him into the huddle for the 2020 season.

According to Ian Rapaport of the NFL Network, three teams remain in the market for Brady: the Los Angeles Chargers, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Patriots.

Each team has a distinct reason to sign Brady.

For Los Angeles, Brady would be a big name that the team could sell to fans, helping fill the 70,000-seat stadium the Chargers will be moving into this fall.

For Tampa Bay, Brady represents an attempt at a win-now move - the Buccaneers have one of the scariest arsenals of receiving weapons in the league but were hamstrung by quarterback Jameis Winston's persistent turnover issues. One of Brady's main struggles with the Patriots this year was a lack of talent around him, and Tampa Bay certainly helps to solve that issue.

And finally, the Patriots would like to keep Brady in their franchise, because it's the only place he's ever been. Bill Belichick is far from the sentimental type, but it's difficult to believe that after 20 years and six Super Bowl wins together the franchise would be happy to let him walk.

Brady is coming off of what one could consider his worst season in years, but he still threw for 4,000 yards and had 24 touchdowns to just eight interceptions. He's not going to out-throw Patrick Mahomes for a season any time soon, but in one game with the AFC Championship on the line, it's still a possibility.

Regardless of where he ends up, he'll still be one of the most must-watch players in the NFL.

  • Read more:

NFL free agency is underway - Here are the biggest signings and where the best players have landed so far

Texans trade DeAndre Hopkins to Cardinals for pennies on the dollar in most baffling move of the NFL offseason so far

Presumptive No. 1 NFL Draft pick Joe Burrow reportedly still wanted a pro-day workout despite coronavirus concerns to help LSU teammates get drafted

The NFL and its players are in a battle over starting free agency during the spread of coronavirus, and both sides are furious