NFL legend Tom Brady throws Expos fans into what ifs

Montreal Expos fans were given more to dream about this week when NFL superstar Tom Brady, who was drafted by the team nearly two decades ago, posted an ad featuring him in an alternate scenario as a baseball player.

"What if" scenarios have played out in the minds of Montreal Expos fans ever since the team they affectionately called "Nos amours" left for Washington, D.C., nearly two decades ago.

And this week, many applauded when NFL superstar Tom Brady gave them more to dream about when he posted an ad online featuring him in an alternate scenario as a retired catcher for the home team rather than a football quarterback.

"The whole thing was kind of cool because it is a bittersweet memory," says superfan Perry Giannis. "Not only what could have been with Brady as an Expos player, but what could have been if we still had a team."

In the ad for Topps, an American trading cards company, Brady's exploits as a catcher and batter are on full display in a Montreal brasserie.

"You know why Tom Brady won seven rings?" asks the bartender. "It was because of his hitting, 649 home runs, what a power hitter," answers a patron.

"Without him, they would have moved us out of Montreal," says another, who turns out to be one of Brady's "would have been" or "could have been" teammates – Expos greats Larry Walker, Vladimir Guerrero and Pedro Martinez all have a cameo in the spoof.

The scenario is not entirely far-fetched.