Tom Brady and the New England Patriots confused a lot of people Monday.
When news broke that Brady restructured his contract, freeing up $24 million, seemingly everyone thought the Patriots quarterback had selflessly given his team millions in cap space. He didn’t, though. He freed up $24 million in cash, which is much different but still helpful.
If Brady hadn’t restructured his deal, then the Patriots would have put $24 million in escrow. Restructuring allows him to get paid week to week and frees up that $24 million for Robert Kraft and the Patriots to spend, rather than hold. Brady had an extra $1 million tacked on to each yearly salary, and now the Patriots can afford — as if they already couldn’t — costly bonuses that could be paid out to free agents this offseason. Cornerback Darrelle Revis, safety Devin McCourty and left tackle Nate Solder might be in line for big contracts with costly signing bonuses, and apparently the Krafts needed to free up some cash to pay those out.
The Patriots still will need to spread out that money along the cap, however. We’re talking actual spendable cash here, not cap room.
Whenever news breaks of a Brady restructure, the immediate thought is “what a selfless player,” and then the next from more pessimistic folks is, “Wait a second, he benefited, too. What a jerk.”
Yes, Brady had money added to his deal and none taken off the table, but let’s not forget that his salaries already are comically low for a player of his caliber.
Brady’s cap hit in 2015 is just $14 million, 17th among active quarterbacks and below players such as Sam Bradford, Jay Cutler and Carson Palmer. Brady’s base salary is just $8 million, which is 14th among active QBs.
Brady is taking less money to allow his team to be more competitive but not because of his recent restructure. Of course, money isn’t an issue for Brady, who’s married to an even higher-paid supermodel and makes gobs of cash through endorsements, but it’s still nice to see a player take less for his team, no matter how much it probably ticks off other quarterbacks around the league.
Thumbnail photo via Greg M. Cooper/USA TODAY Sports Images
