DarrylS

From Mike Reiss, Brady altered his contract so Moss could fit in, heard on a lot of the sports shows how they were waiting for Tom to weigh in on this deal, guess this speaks volumes. Also suspect that this is Tom's way of putting his Imprimatur on this whole situation. The legend continues to grow..

http://www.boston.com/sports/footbal...ip_of_the_cap/

Quarterback Tom Brady has yet to publicly comment on the Patriots' acquisition of receiver Randy Moss, but his actions speak volumes.

As part of the whirlwind process that brought Moss to New England, Brady provided a key assist.

Because the Patriots had to acquire the original terms of Moss's contract as part of the trade with the Raiders, the team needed to clear salary cap space to absorb the $9.25 million figure that Moss was scheduled to earn.

Enter Brady, who agreed to restructure his present contract that runs through 2010 to create the space.

That allowed the Patriots to finalize the trade for Moss, who then tore up his old contract and signed a one-year, $3 million deal that could be worth up to $5 million in incentives.

"Tom does what he can in order to win," said Don Yee, his agent.

Brady's involvement with the Moss discussions was just one of the layers to a beat-the-clock process that began when the Patriots received permission from the Raiders to speak with Moss late Saturday night after the first three rounds of the draft.

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"Being the best doesn't mean you always win. It just means you win more than anyone else".. tweet from Kurt Warner to Tom Brady.

Ahriman

That's incredible. I guess we shouldn't be surprised by things like this after all this time, but it never ceases to amaze me.

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"I have a microscope and my microscope is very big." - Randy Moss

solman

I doubt that Tom gave up any money. (He shouldn't have been asked to.)

If he did a simple restructuring, the net effect would be to guarantee most of his $6M salary for this year, and move 75% of the gurantee into the future.

That's something that any player would jump at.

Drewwho

There are no words to thank Mo Lewis or... GOD!

PatsFanInVa

Oh, my my my.

You see what this means, right?

First, Brady gives up nothing other than the timing of when he is paid what money. His hit to the cap in 2008 and beyond increases, but hey, so does the cap in general.

For this year, however - I am gonna jus' 'bout crap mah pants here - right, Brady made room for the difference between what Randy was already due, and the $3M he was getting up front.

Does this mean that Randy was due $6.75M more, and Brady restructured to the tune of that much? If so, this means yikes, with Moss here, new contract in hand, we are sitting on $6.75M waiting for guys to come to Foxboro and work out.

Eh, this stuff is speculation right now I guess... I don't get whether Moss was due that whole 9.75 before he could come to town and sign for 3 or not, but if that's the case... well, all I can say is [ulp]... we ain't done yet.

Almost scared of ourselves at this point,

PFnV

Miguel

BINGO!!!!

I will never get what players are applauded for agreeing to getting the same amount of cash but earlier in the year WHILE increasing their future cap hits.

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Isaac

I think that giving a player credit ("a tip of the cap") for guaranteeing his own salaray and/or collecting some of their future salary as an immediate bonus is among the most ridiculous and non-sensical aspects of the NFL. It's even worse when player's brag about it (e.g., "I stepped up and helped the team" -- see Ty Law circa 2003). The player is risking nothing, giving up nothing, and basically doing nothing at all!

You can spend all day talking about the greatness of Brady. This should not be a part of that discussion.

dryheat44

You got it. That's veteran linebacker or Asante extension money we now have available.

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When it's third and 10, you can have the milk drinkers and I'll take the whiskey drinkers every time. -- R.I.P. Max McGee

spacecrime

I know. I remember once Ty Law was interviewed on ESPN, and he said when the Pats needed cap room (I thnk for Brady) he went to bat and re-did his contract, and now when it comes time to give him a pay raise, the Pats refused. I wondered if the interviewer was aware that he was being jobbed.

If Brady took a hit, it is one thing. But if all he did was to get his 2007 salary today rather than in 16 installments, then the whole deal is just his agent putting a spin on it. I'm surprised Reiss bit.

PonyExpress

If Brady hadn't agreed to restructure so Moss could come aboard, it would have been a disgrace. How much credit do you get for avoiding disgrace?