Patriots, Tom Brady agree to three-year, $27 million contract extension

The New England Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady have agreed to a three-year contract extension that should keep the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player under contract at a team-friendly rate for the remainder of his career, Peter King of Sports Illustrated reports.

Brady was under contract through the 2014 season with base salaries of $9.75 million and a $5 million roster bonuses in each season. Brady's cap number in 2013 and 2014 were scheduled to be an astronomical $21.8 million in each season. As Shutdown Corner noted in our offseason TPS report for the Patriots, an extension through the 2017 season would help reduce that cap figure in 2013 and ensure that Brady is a Patriot until he is 40, an age Brady has said he'd like to reach in his playing career.

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According to King, the Patriots have reduced Brady's cap number to $13.8 million in 2013 and $14.8 million in 2014, a two-year cap savings of $15 million. In addition to helping the Patriots' salary cap situation in the short-term, Brady's extension goes easy on the Patriots in the cash department in the backend. In terms of new money, Brady will earn $27 million, a $9 million per year average that ranks below what quarterbacks Kevin Kolb and Ryan Fitzpatrick have received in their recent extensions.

Brady equaled a career-high with 401 completions on a career-high 637 pass attempts for 4,827 yards with 34 touchdowns and just eight interceptions, finishing the season with a passer rating of 98.7. Brady was named to eighth Pro Bowl after the season, his fourth Pro Bowl selection since sustaining a torn ACL in the 2008 season-opener against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The 35-year-old Brady has already set all of the Patriots' passing records and the future Hall of Famer is in the Top 10 in the NFL record books, as well. Brady is nine touchdown passes away from moving past Fran Tarkenton into sole possession of fourth place on the NFL's passing touchdowns list.

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