Why Patriots Fans Shouldn't Freak Out Over Tom Brady's Cryptic Photo

Tom Brady nearly broke the internet with a cryptic photo that hinted at a big announcement, but one ESPN reporter said that Patriots fans have nothing to worry about.

Phew!

On Thursday, Tom Brady gave Patriots fans quite the scare with a cryptic social media post. Keeping things simple, the pro football player shared a black and white photo of what appears to be him walking out onto a stadium. Between the photo's somber tone and Brady's lack of explanation, many fans speculated that it was the 42-year-old's way of announcing his departure from the New England Patriots, or worse, his retirement!  

Thankfully, it was a false alarm. Seeing Twitter's reactions to the post, ESPN Senior NFL Insider Adam Schefter took to Twitter to set the record straight to the best of his abilities. "Am told that this tweet is not related to Tom Brady's football future," he wrote. "Repeat, not related to his football future. But the speculation sure is fun."

Brady has yet to reveal what the post means, but did send out a tweet afterwards to congratulate former Patriots teammate Brian Hoyer for welcoming a new addition to his family: A rescued Boxer named Rocco. "Rocco Hoyer has a nice ring to it," Brady tweeted in response to the Indianapolis Colts quarterback. "What a great dog!"  

Fears of Brady's departure have stemmed from his one-year contract extension with the Patriots coming to an end. With that done, the Hall of Famer is now a free agent, according to NFL.com.

But from the sounds of it, Brady isn't going anywhere. Earlier this month, he addressed the Patriots' loss and assured fans that his 20th season wouldn't be his last with a heartfelt social media post.

"I just wanted to say to all of our fans, THANK YOU!" his caption began. "After a few days of reflection, I am so grateful and humbled by the unconditional support you have shown me the past two decades. Running out of that tunnel every week is a feeling that is hard to explain. I wish every season ended in a win, but that's not the nature of sports (or life)."

He concluded with, "In both life and football, failure is inevitable. You dont always win. You can, however, learn from that failure, pick yourself up with great enthusiasm, and place yourself in the arena again. And that's right where you will find me. Because I know I still have more to prove."