The Bucs and quarterback Tom Brady have agreed to a contract extension, keeping the seven-time Super Bowl champion in Tampa Bay for at least one more season. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the contract is a four-year extension with voids years that essentially tacks just one actual year onto his contract.
“When we acquired Tom a year ago, we were extremely excited about the leadership, poise and winning track record that he would bring to our locker room. Since that time, he has proven himself to be the ultimate competitor and delivered in every way we had imagined, helping us capture the Lombardi Trophy,” said Buccaneers General Manager Jason Licht. “Year after year, Tom proves that he remains one of the elite quarterbacks in this game and we couldn’t be happier to keep him in Tampa Bay as we continue to pursue our goals together.”
Tom Brady reached agreement with the Buccaneers today on a four-year contract extension that voids to a one-year extension that locks him into Tampa through the 2022 season, sources tell ESPN.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 12, 2021
While the extension locks Brady into Tampa Bay through the next two seasons, it also allows the Bucs to move money in his contract back. The extension will free up about $19 million in cap space for the 2021 season, as the Bucs attempt to bring back most of the key free agents from their Super Bowl-winning roster. This puts the Bucs at about $14 million in cap space right now, with more moves on the way soon.
The Tom-Brady extension saves the Buccaneers $19 million against the cap this year, per sources. The additional voidable years are there to defray the cost. It was another effort from Brady to keep as much of the team together as possible. https://t.co/65qAGO5Px7
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 12, 2021
Tampa Bay has already placed the franchise tag on wide receiver Chris Godwin and re-signed linebacker Lavonte David, with outside linebacker Shaq Barrett, tight end Rob Gronkowski and defensive lineman Ndamukong Suh all remaining unsigned targets for the Bucs.
In his first year with the Bucs, Brady led the Bucs to an 11-5 record, their first playoff appearance since 2007 and eventually their first Super Bowl victory since 2003. He was also named the Super Bowl LV MVP, his In the regular season Brady racked up 4,633 passing yards, 40 passing touchdowns and three rushing touchdowns with just 12 interceptions.
Through the Bucs’ four playoff games Brady added 1,061 passing yards and 10 touchdowns.
Brady’s original cap hit of $28.375 million in 2021 would have put him as the seventh-highest cap hit among quarterbacks in the NFL, trailing Dak Prescott, Patrick Mahomes, Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, Kirk Cousins, Ryan Tannehill
