You never know what sort of impact Brady has when it comes to the team-building process, and he’s always been very careful to downplay his role in personnel decisions. But there’s the very real likelihood that the quarterback made this move with Welker specifically in mind. The two are not only great teammates, but extremely close friends. (They go on vacation together, for goodness sakes.) The idea of the quarterback potentially being forced to start over with another receiver – whether it was Danny Amendola, Percy Harvin or Tavon Auston – who was shoehorned into a situation where they were trying to replicate Welker’s impact couldn’t have sat well with the quarterback.