Tom Brady Agrees to Stay in Tampa Bay Through 2022

• Tom Brady has agreed to a contract extension that will keep him in Tampa Bay at least until 2022.
• Brady’s deal saves the Bucs an estimated $19M in cap space this year and help them keep the band together for another run at the Super Bowl.
• The Bucs are currently second in the latest Super Bowl LVI odds boards at +600, behind only the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have reached a contract extension with QB Tom Brady on Friday. While the Bucs did not reveal the specifics of the deal, ESPN reported that it is a four-year deal that voids to a one-year extension which will keep Brady locked in Tampa Bay through the 2022 season.

The 43-year Brady previously said that his goal was to play until 45 but changed tone during Super Bowl LV week, declaring that he is considering playing past that age. After the success that he and his team achieved last season, there’s no reason to doubt that.

In his first season with the Bucs, Brady turned the franchise around, ending their playoff drought, and helping them become the first team to win the Super Bowl at their own stadium. The win extended his record to 7 Super Bowl wins and his performance gave him a record-adding 5th Super Bowl MVP award.

The best NFL betting sites are listing Tampa Bay second in the latest Super Bowl LVI oddsboards. Online sportsbook MyBookie.ag currently has them listed at +600, behind only the Kansas City Chiefs’ +400. But with Brady back, and a good chance that the Bucs will be able to keep the band together, there’s reason to believe they can do it all over again.

Keeping the Band Together

In pursuit of 8…LFG @Buccaneers we’re keeping the band together pic.twitter.com/49zUwS5l3D

— Tom Brady (@TomBrady) March 12, 2021

An “educated assumption’ made by Sportrac says that the Buccaneers converted all but the minimum $1.075M of Brady’s $25M salary into a signing bonus that will be spread over five years, while adding another $25M in 2022. This move will produce an estimated $9.3M in cap hit, saving the Bucs $19M in cap space for 2021.

Before Brady’s deal, the Bucs were $7.756M over the $182.5M salary cap after using the franchise tag on wide receiver Chris Godwin and re-signing linebacker Lavonte David to a two-year extension. Like Brady’s contract, David’s deal has voidable years which will make him count only $3.5M against the cap.

The drawback to Tampa Bay using voidable contract years is that they are essentially borrowing from the future. However, given Brady’s age, they recognize that his window is even smaller now, and that they need to maximize investing for the present if they want to have an opportunity to win again.

Barrett Chimes In

Shaq Barrett chimes in… https://t.co/bu0GPLZUMo pic.twitter.com/Gctch3we0u

— Bucs__Daily (@bucsfootball_) March 12, 2021

Shortly after Brady posted “we’re keeping the band together” in his social media account, Bucs linebacker Shaq Barrett immediately chimed in an commented: “yessir” which is a very positive sign for the Tampa Bay faithful.

After Godwin’s franchise tag and David’s signing, Barrett is expected to be the next piece that Tampa Bay is going to secure. The 28-year old former Colorado State standout produced 4.0 sacks during the 2020 NFL playoffs after leading the league in sacks with 19.5 in 2019.

Barrett though isn’t the only key player that the Bucs want back. Tight end Rob Gronkowski, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, wide receiver Antonio Brown, and running back Leonard Fournette are also due to become free agents next Wednesday if the don’t get signed. There is still a lot of work to do for the Bucs in terms of getting there financially but Brady’s selfless act is a big step towards that.