Saturday, March 13, 2021

Mark Madden's Hot Take: Tom Brady's contract shows why salary cap is a sham

MARK MADDEN | Saturday, March 13, 2021 


AP
Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski, left, and quarterback Tom Brady celebrate after defeating the Kansas City Chiefs in the NFL Super Bowl 55 football game Sunday, Feb. 7, 2021, in Tampa, Fla.

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Tom Brady reconfigured his contract to ignite the latest barrage of “Tom Brady makes less so his team can win more” propaganda.

Like most propaganda, it’s primarily fiction.

Brady’s wife is supermodel Gisele Bundchen. She has earned more than a half-billion dollars. Brady has earned $263 million playing football. When you’ve made over a quarter-billion and your missus nearly doubles that, it’s a lot easier to be selfless for the sake of the team.

Not that Brady necessarily is.

Brady’s new restructuring clears $19 million cap space, quite opportune given that Tampa Bay has a few key free agents to re-sign, mostly notably outside linebacker Shaq Barrett and tight end Rob Gronkowski. Ex-Steelers receiver Antonio Brown also needs a new deal.

But Brady’s four-year extension makes it possible for him to get paid approximately the same as last year, $25 million. Most of that will be in a roster bonus, enabling the Buccaneers to spread out Brady’s cap hit over those four seasons, three of which he likely won’t play.

Brady is making the same, but Tampa Bay gets major cap relief. So, what the heck is the point of the salary cap? So much about the cap is a sham.

Every time Brady “does right by his team,” it’s good PR for him and bad PR for every other quarterback in the NFL.

That includes Ben Roethlisberger of this parish, whom Yinzer Twitter lambasted in the immediate aftermath of Brady’s new perceived good deed. “Ben should have done more, like Brady!” This despite Roethlisberger actually taking a pay cut of $5 million for this season, while Brady will be making roughly the same as he was originally set to.

But Brady has won seven Super Bowls. That’s the best PR of all. Roethlisberger has won “only” two.

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