New England Patriots fans hoping to see Tom Brady's return to Gillette Stadium may want to start saving their money now.

Tickets for the Week 4 Sunday Night Football matchup between Brady's defending Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Patriots in Foxborough are already at a massive demand, CBS Boston reports.

John Higgins, owner of the ticket selling business Higs Tickets, told CBS Boston that buyers have been anticipating the matchup since Brady signed with the Bucs last offseason and believes prices could reach record totals for an NFL regular season game.

“It could be close to $1,000 just to get into the nosebleeds upstairs. It could be a record for an NFL game that’s not a Super Bowl,’ Higgins said.

The NFL officially announced the matchup during its revealing of all 32 NFL teams' schedules on Wednesday night.

The matchup will also feature the return of longtime Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski.

Brady and Gronkowski both spent their entire NFL careers with the Patriots prior to joining the Buccaneers last offseason.

Brady was selected in the sixth-round of the 2000 NFL Draft and led the Pats to six Super Bowl championships during his 20 seasons with the organization. Gronkowski, who was selected by New England at No. 42 overall in the 2010 NFL Draft, spent his first nine seasons in the organization, winning three championships alongside Brady before initially retiring in 2019.

Brady signed with Tampa Bay as a free agent in March 2020 and was soon joined by Gronkowski -- who came out of retirement shortly after Brady's decision -- after he was acquired by the Bucs via trade.

True to form, Brady and Gronkowski enjoyed record-setting performances during Super Bowl LV.

Brady finished Sunday's game with 201 yards and three touchdowns on 21 of 29 passing, winning a record fifth Super Bowl MVP Award, which surpassed his own previous record set in Super Bowl LI (2017.)

Gronkowski led the Buccaneers with six receptions for 67 yards and two touchdowns, the first of which set a new NFL record for most postseason touchdowns by a duo, as the 13th between himself and Brady during their lengthy run as teammates.

Brady and Gronkowski, who had previously appeared in five Super Bowls together prior to Sunday's game, connected on an 8-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter, which surpassed former San Francisco 49ers Joe Montana and Jerry Rice's previous record of 12.

Brady later connected with Gronkowski on a 17-yard touchdown with 6:05 remaining in the second quarter to extend the Bucs' lead to 14-3 and set the new record at 14 touchdowns.

The duo has now won four Super Bowls together, while Brady -- who won his record-setting fifth Super Bowl MVP -- has won seven all-time, the most by an NFL quarterback.

Photo: Getty Images

Sean Salisbury

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