Does Tom Brady Love Trump?

Don't look now, but Donald J. Trump is still the front-runner in the Republican Party's presidential field. It never quite sounds right, does it? He's currently losing some ground to retired neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson in the polls, but he's still cruising out front, for the time being at least. And he may have landed a high-profile new supporter — like New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, perhaps? On Saturday morning, a photo hit social media that got people talking: Tom Brady apparently has a Trump hat in his locker, bearing the real estate mogul's campaign catchphrase: "Make America Great Again."

If you've seen any photos of Trump on the campaign trail lately, you've probably glimpsed this hat before — a bright red, not terribly dignified looking baseball cap, with the phrase written across the front in nondescript white letters. It doesn't exactly scream class, much less the chosen hat of real estate moguls and legendary Super Bowl quarterbacks alike.

And yet, there it is. The image was tweeted out by Barstool Sports' John Feitelberg on Saturday morning, just days after Brady prevailed in his Deflategate suspension appeal. Trump did do something to get on the quarterback's good side, in fairness — he tweeted his congratulations on Thursday, and called Brady his "friend."

For reference's sake, take a gander at that red baseball cap in the corner of Brady's locker. Looks awfully familiar! Here's the hat in action on Trump's head, during a recent stadium speech in Alabama.

As you can see, it leaves a few things to be desired as a fashion statement. But if there's anything working in its favor, it's how eye-catching and recognizable it is — so much so that it practically jumps off the screen when you see the hat in Brady's locker. It's basically Donald Trump's purest essence, distilled into hat form. And considering Trump is all about "winners" and "losers," you've got to figure he's happy having a four-time Super Bowl champion with one of these things. He'd surely be even happier if there were a picture of Brady actually wearing it, since the hat could be there as a joke just as easily as a sincere political statement.

Of course, there's no telling how on-the-nose Trump is about being Brady's friend, either. Basically, if you're a big Tom Brady fan, no need to lose all hope yet — there are all sorts of possible explanations for this image besides "Tom Brady loves Trump." But at the very least, the grim possibility is now staring us all in the face.