Cam Newton and the New England Patriots stole the NFL headlines for all of an hour before Tom Brady decided to snatch them away, agreeing to terms with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a creative contract extension, per CBS Sports Insider Jason La Canfora. It is a four-year contract that -- as has become all the rage in a pandemic-fueled salary cap crunch -- includes three voidable years, essentially locking him in for only an extra year. Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht will certain take it, considering it secures Brady through at least 2022 and provides much-needed cap relief in the process.
The move lessens Brady's coming cap hit in 2021 from the heft $28.38 million that was set to land, and will allow more movement as they attempt to re-sign players like future Hall of Fame tight end Rob Gronkowski, pass-rush dynamo Shaquil Barrett and a list of others, having already locked up linebacker Lavonte David on a two-year deal that itself includes two voidable years. Brady's extension will reportedly save the Buccaneers upwards of $19 million toward this year's salary cap, per Adam Schefter of ESPN, the final figure having been set at $182.5 million by the NFL and NFLPA.
Keeping Brady in tow beyond 2021 has been a goal of Licht's for weeks now, if not longer, and he just accomplished it.
"I talk to Tom often," Licht said in late February to "The Rich Eisen Show". "Probably keep that under wraps, right now. It appears that he really had a good time this year -- winning the Super Bowl. [He] likes our organization, likes our coaches, likes our head coach and ownership. And we certainly love him. Usually when you have those things going for each other, it's a match made in heaven.
"So we'd like to keep this going."
It's usually unfathomable to consider an NFL player still suiting up as he approaches the age of 50, let alone one still playing at a high level, but those are two things Brady might soon own. Having already shattered a slew of records in his illustrious future Hall of Fame career, the competitive fires within the 43-year-old have not waned one bit and it's possible he's eyeing an even more incomprehensible mark: to own 10 Super Bowl rings. His current tally of seven is already more than any other franchise in the league, but he's never let go of the sting of the three Super Bowls he lost, and narrowly, that could already have him with 10 Lombardi trophies.
He'll now get a chance to land No. 8 and No. 9 but, if he does, why would he stop one shy of having a shot at having a ring for every finger and both thumbs? This is exactly what Licht is banking on, so we can all probably expect another conversation between he and Brady in a year or so from now.
As for Father Time, well, he'll just have to take up a hobby while he waits for Brady to start declining.
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