It's hard to fathom.
It's hard to even truly consider.
But could New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's future with the NFL organization that he's helmed to six Super Bowl appearances and three - and very possibly four - Super Bowl victories, the only NFL franchise he's ever called home, be in jeopardy?
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick addressed the media today and offered a statement on the Deflate-Gate scandal that has hounded the Pats since their victory over the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship Game.
For the most part Belichick did his best to plead complete and utter ignorance regarding the inception of the illegal activity, though he did admit to the balls being underinflated and vowed that it would never happen again.
But he also made it clear that football inflation preference is something only those who handle the rock on a regular basis - like quarterbacks - really concern themselves with.
"I think we all know that quarterbacks, kickers, specialists have certain preferences on the footballs," Belichick said, per NBC Sports' transcript. "They know a lot more than I do. They're a lot more sensitive to it than I am. I hear them comment on it from time to time, but I can tell you and they will tell you that there's never any sympathy whatsoever from me on that subject. Zero.
"Tom's personal preferences on his footballs are something that he can talk about in much better detail and information than I could possibly provide."
The last line points a pretty clear finger at Brady - one league source told Mike Florio of NBC Sports that Belichick's decision to pass the buck to Brady was "shocking."
Is that something Belichick would have done in the past? Is that something the notoriously tight-lipped Belichick would have ever let slip in Brady's heyday, when the team was winning back-to-back Super Bowls and everything in New England looked rosy and bright?
Is Brady's standing with Belichick and with Robert Kraft becoming less assured as the NFL days turn to weeks turn to months turn to seasons?
It's fair to wonder.
At 37 years of age and in his 14th NFL season, Brady's an old man playing a young man's game. He's much closer to the end of his career at this point than the beginning.
Yes, he's still a very capable quarterback, as evidenced by his impending appearance in Super Bowl XLIX and the stats he put up this season - 4,109 yards passing, 33 touchdowns, nine interceptions and a 97.4 passer rating - but he's also expensive and the team already has mostly unproven but promising youngster Jimmy Garoppolo waiting in the wings.
At some point, Pats fans, the unthinkable will actually happen. Belichick and Kraft will have to move on from Brady, and as Brady's current deal - he signed a five-year, $60 million extension in Feb. 2013, which he then restructured in Dec. 2014 - carries incrementally increasing cap hits and decreasing dead money values, it's not hard to see that the end is drawing near for the quarterback.
After next season, for instance, Brady will cost, per Spotrac, $15 million against the cap, but only $12 million to cut. In 2017, he'll cost $16 million but only $6 million to cut.
No matter how you slice it, the Brady-Belichick combo, a pairing that has brought the New England Patriots more than a decade of unmatched success, is on its last legs.
It remains to be seen how it all plays out, but Super Bowl XLIX may be Brady's final chance to prove his mettle and find ultimate victory as a member of the Pats.
