Tom Brady, NFL world react after Bucs coach Bruce Arians retires, Todd Bowles named successor

Bruce Arians surprised the NFL world on Wednesday night when he announced his retirement.

Arians is moving into the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ front office as a senior football consultant, and will be replaced by defensive coordinator Todd Bowles.

Naturally, the announcement drew plenty of reaction from the NFL world on social media — both congratulating Arians on his retirement and praising Bowles, who will get his second shot as a head coach in the league after his first stint with the New York Jets.

Quarterback Tom Brady led the way with a lengthy Instagram post dedicated to Arians. His former coach responded in the comments, with a whisky glass following his “Thanks brotha” reply.

Others around the sports world quickly followed suit with tributes and even a few jokes of their own.