Tom Brady and Wife Gisele Bündchen 'Hitting a Rough Patch' in Marriage: 'There's a Lot of Tension'

Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen are in disagreement about the Tampa Bay Buccaneer's quarterback decision to play another season in the NFL — and the choice has led to "a lot of tension" between the longtime couple, sources tell PEOPLE.

The 42-year-old Bündchen "wasn't thrilled" with her husband's decision to end his retirement from professional football earlier this year after only two months, a source close to Brady tells PEOPLE.

"There's a lot of tension. She was so happy when he announced his retirement, and she wasn't thrilled at all when he went back on that."

"They're hitting a rough patch," the insider continues. "But I know they're trying, or at least he's trying, to figure it out and make it work. He wants to get through this and for things to get better."

Rumors of a rift between the couple increased after Brady was excused from practicing with the Buccaneers last month "to deal with some personal things," head coach Todd Bowles said during a press conference at the time. According to Bowles, Brady and the team discussed the absence before the start of training camp in July.

Brady spoke about his absence from the team after he eventually returned 11 days later.

"Everyone has different situations they're dealing with, and we all have unique challenges to our lives," Brady told reporters. "I'm 45 years old, man."

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"There's a lot of s— going on, so you just have to try and figure out life the best you can. You know, it's a continuous process," he continued.

Over Labor Day Weekend, Brady and Bündchen — who share son Benjamin Rein, 12, and 9-year-old daughter Vivian Lake — appeared to spend time apart.

Sources told PEOPLE that the supermodel took Benjamin and Vivian to a Florida water park while Brady flew to New York to see his son John "Jack" Edward, whom he shares with ex Bridget Moynahan, at the 15-year-old's football practice.

"Gisele looked gorgeous in a one-piece black bathing suit," and was "very low key," a source said of Bündchen. "[She was] talking with other people in the pool."

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Another added of Brady: "Tom was in great spirits and chatted to all the parents," the insider said. "He flew all the way in for the scrimmage... He's such a sweet dad and is always there for Jack."

Brady and Bündchen have been married for 13 years after meeting through friends. In an interview with WSJ. Magazine, Brady opened up about their first meeting and reminisced about how much it changed his life.

"We had so many meals together," he told the outlet. "That was something in our fast-paced lives that we missed. I got to see my family grow and talk about different things on a day-to-day basis."

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Brady and Bündchen tied the knot one month after they got engaged in an intimate ceremony on Feb. 26, 2009, at St. Monica Catholic Church in California.

During an appearance on The Howard Stern Show in 2020, Brady opened up about some of the struggles that he and Bündchen had previously faced. He shared that at one point in 2018, Bündchen "wasn't satisfied" with their marriage.

He said: "A couple of years ago, she didn't feel like I was doing my part for the family. She felt like I would play football all season and she would take care of the house, and then all of a sudden when the season ended, I'd be like, 'Great, let me get into all of my other business activities. Let me get into my football training,' and she's sitting there going, 'Well when are you going to do things for the house? When are you going to take the kids to school and do that?' "

Brady admitted that it was a wake-up call for him and it marked a "big transition" in his life, where he began to focus more on his family.

In an October 2021 episode of his Let's Go! podcast, Brady discussed how Bündchen has had to hold "down the house" while he built his NFL career and said he appreciates the sacrifices she has made in her own career for their family.

"I think there's things that she wants to accomplish," he said. "You know, she hasn't worked as much in the last 10, 12 years just raising our family and kind of committing to being in a life in Boston and then moving to Florida."