A Patriot for Life

Via the Washington Post

Tom Brady has reportedly signed a three-year contract extension with the New England Patriots worth an estimated $27 million.  Already signed through 2014, the deal makes Brady a Patriot through 2017 and the age of 40 -- almost certainly ensuring that he finishes his career with the same team that drafted him out of Michigan with the 199th overall pick.

Although $27 million dollars sounds like--and indeed is--a ludicrous sum of money, Brady is actually signing for much less than his true market value.  In turn, the Patriots immediately free up $15 million in cap space and retain more capital to build a better team.  For the sake of comparison, most expect Baltimore quarterback Joe Flaco to make around $20 million per year when he finally inks his new deal.

SI notes that this is not the first time that Brady has put his team first during contract negotiations.  His last contract, worth $60 million over six years, paid him about $5 million less per year than Peyton Manning at the time.  Although Brady's sacrifice is clearly a noble act that reflects his team-first mentality, there may be a secondary gain in order.  If the extra cap room results in an improved Patriot team and an additional Super Bowl win or two, Brady could stand to make substantially more money in sponsorship and advertising.