Bucs: Tom Brady’s reworked contract could make playing past age 45 a reality
By Scott Rogust
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are reportedly ‘getting closer’ to reworking quarterback Tom Brady’s contract.
Last NFL offseason, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers dished out $50 million to former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady over the course of two years. In his very first season in the Sunshine State, Brady led the Buccaneers to their first Super Bowl win since 2002. Now, he has one more year remaining on his deal, and the Buccaneers have pivotal players hitting free agency.
Never fear, Brady is here to save the day for Tampa Bay.
According to ESPN’s Josina Anderson, the Buccaneers are “getting closer” to reworking Brady’s contract. With this news, it is a possibility that Brady will play when he is 45 years old in the 2022 season.
I'm told the #Bucs are 'getting closer' to reworking Tom Brady's contract, per source. Tom Brady will be 44 in August. Brady has said he'd 'consider' playing beyond 45 years old.
— JosinaAnderson (@JosinaAnderson) March 6, 2021
Tom Brady vs. Father Time battle continues
As Anderson mentions, Brady turns 44 this August. The easiest way for the Buccaneers to free up cap space is to extend Brady’s deal. Taking that into consideration, Brady will take the field at 45.
The Buccaneers have a little under $12 million in cap space available to them as of March 6, and Brady carries a cap hit of $28.4 million for the upcoming season. Tampa Bay has the likes of Chris Godwin, Shaquil Barrett, Lavonte David, Rob Gronkowski and Antonio Brown set to hit unrestricted free agency.
ESPN’s Jenna Laine reports that things are trending towards the Buccaneers placing the franchise tag on Godwin, which would cost them around $16.5 million for the 2021 season. But, Godwin is reportedly willing to play on the franchise tender. If that is to come to fruition, then the Buccaneers could sign Barrett to a long-term contract extension and keep him away from other pass rusher-needy teams. The other players are to be determined, but locking in Godwin and Barrett is of the utmost priority for Tampa Bay.
Brady is willing to rework his deal to keep the Buccaneers as Super Bowl contenders for the foreseeable future. We will know how much cap space he frees up once the deal becomes official.
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