Brady contract situation (Merged - UPDATED:Deal Done)

[Hammer of Thor]

You think Tom accepting $50m instead of the max offer of $25m from Pats is him not negotiating in good faith? Really?

What is good faith? Accept anything the Pats offer?

I understand this is a hypothetical you posed. That said the Reiss article (who is one of the most plugged in guys around) was pretty clear that both sides have a general sense of trust and expectations with each other. The Patriots are trusting Brady when he says he wants to be here, doesn't want top dollar because he wants to build a team around him, but just wants to be reasonably compensated. Brady is trusting the Patriots when they say they want him here, they just can't afford to take the risk of a long-term deal on a 42 year old QB, but that if he does play well at age 42 they will reasonably compensate him for 2020. And as a sign of that faith, the Patriots agreed to let Brady have equal say in the decision going forward by eliminating any leverage the Patriots could have (franchise tag).

Your hypothetical? We'll see if it happens, but whether a $2M raise from 2019 is considered "reasonable" or not is up for discussion, but leaving for by-far the largest single year contract in NFL history definitely doesn't sound like what the actions of someone who doesn't care about top dollar, just wants to be reasonably compensated so he can have a good team around him. I'm not saying Brady doesn't deserve that money. Just saying it's not consistent with the views stated.

Finally, as noted, Drew Brees has been in a similar situation for the last few years with the Saints and they always seem to work it out before he hits the market. Given the past history and what we've heard from a few plugged in sources, why would we expect anything different in Brady's case? Yes, it *could* happen. That's the risk the Pats are taking (and Brady too, for believing the Pats would pay him reasonably). The Jets *could* win the Super Bowl this year too. But why would we expect it to happen, and get all worked up about it at this point?

 

[ralmat55]

What playoff worthy team would have 50 million in cap space?

Pretty much any team with Brady is a playoff worthy team.

 

[Jackson 2]

Are you saying it’s not possible to be a Pats fan first and disagree with a Kraft/BB decision?

Look, it's pretty obvious you have strong feelings about the Brady contract issue. I understand, we all do. But, I also think your question reeks of someone looking for a fight. I'll respond to your question with a (rhetorical) question: do you see any mention of BB and/or Kraft in my post? Do us both a favor: if you want to get combative with someone, do it with someone who's directly challenged you. I haven't, so f### off.

 

[Hyped]

LOL@ Alex Reimer's latest article on EEI.....

In a way, I wish the Pats and Brady did a two year deal.....gonna be annoying to read all the BS speculation the next 7 months....

 

[Betterthanmost]

It is really hard for me to read Brady, Tom vs time showed me I knew very little, then the initial price of the cook book he marketed surprised me further, but what threw me for a loop was his decision to skip the OTAs recently. BB is not happy with it, but can't do anything about it. The offense is going to struggle due to the new faces and Brady not getting enough acquaintance.
I am neutral with this deal, it looks like a perfect deal for the team. Hopefully, it all ends well.

 

[fgssand]

LOL@ Alex Reimer's latest article on EEI.....

In a way, I wish the Pats and Brady did a two year deal.....gonna be annoying to read all the BS speculation the next 7 months....

I agree and that’s for no other reason than what you said.

My opinion is there’s no way he’d ever play for another team and there’s no QB BB would rather have than TB, as long as he can still throw and compete for Superbowls.

 

[rochrist]

You think Tom accepting $50m instead of the max offer of $25m from Pats is him not negotiating in good faith? Really?

What is good faith? Accept anything the Pats offer?

When you've already pulled in almost 230 million from the team in question, yeah.

 

[VectorPrime]

No team would offer him 50 million that’s stupid. Someone would offer him 30-35 though.

 

[tuckeverlasting]

of course i know almost any team would sign brady if they could but where is brady going to go...we're the only fans who haven't insulted him by calling him a cheater.

 

[patfanken]

LOL@ Alex Reimer's latest article on EEI.....

In a way, I wish the Pats and Brady did a two year deal.....gonna be annoying to read all the BS speculation the next 7 months....

I totally agree with you. I've read all the comments and even managed to listen to F&M for 4 minutes today. But here's the thing that they ALL seem to miss. Brady's character. They all assume that he equates MONEY with "respect". But that has NEVER been his character. So WHY have 20 years did that suddenly change????

I've read where he's made close to $250MM during the course of his time with the Pats. Over the course of the last decade, his wife has earned even more than that. He's also earned Tens of Millions in endorsement, book sales, and the TB12 brand.

I refuse to believe that in his 2oth year, after all the years of understanding that in a hard cap system, every dollar HE makes, leaves one less for the REST of the team. Money that will build a competitive team. He suddenly woke up one morning and said to himself, "F*CK everyone else, this is the year that I need get a long term commitment that shows me some RESPECT" And when they wouldn't give it to him he decided that next year he's going to take his ball and leave. Next thing we'll hear Curren say is that Brady is tired of Bill always calling him out when he makes mistakes.

See what I'm getting at here. They want me to believe that suddenly, after 20 years, Tom Brady has morphed backward into a narcissistic, petulant diva, me-first player. I can't see it and common sense SHOULD make it impossible for the rest of you not to see it for what it is.

 

[Deus Irae]

The offense is going to struggle due to the new faces and Brady not getting enough acquaintance.

How so? How is the problem going to be the lack of "acquaintance"?

 

[Betterthanmost]

How so? How is the problem going to be the lack of "acquaintance"?

Should have said I will not be surprise if they struggle early in the season. Brady once said something that has stuck with me for a long time and it was about the importance of OTAs and getting to know the team to set the foundation for the season. Lack of acquaintance should not need an explanation.

 

[mgteich]

If Brady were all about allowing the team to spend money on other players, he needn't have signed for the $8M increase. He could have allowed that money to go to get us another player.
=======
I suspect that we all are a bit too extreme. Some claim Brady is all about getting a fair deal, that is, he is all about the money. Other say that he altruistic, and would accept a lowball offer in order to help the team.

I totally agree with you. I've read all the comments and even managed to listen to F&M for 4 minutes today. But here's the thing that they ALL seem to miss. Brady's character. They all assume that he equates MONEY with "respect". But that has NEVER been his character. So WHY have 20 years did that suddenly change????

I've read where he's made close to $250MM during the course of his time with the Pats. Over the course of the last decade, his wife has earned even more than that. He's also earned Tens of Millions in endorsement, book sales, and the TB12 brand.

I refuse to believe that in his 2oth year, after all the years of understanding that in a hard cap system, every dollar HE makes, leaves one less for the REST of the team. Money that will build a competitive team. He suddenly woke up one morning and said to himself, "F*CK everyone else, this is the year that I need get a long term commitment that shows me some RESPECT" And when they wouldn't give it to him he decided that next year he's going to take his ball and leave. Next thing we'll hear Curren say is that Brady is tired of Bill always calling him out when he makes mistakes.

See what I'm getting at here. They want me to believe that suddenly, after 20 years, Tom Brady has morphed backward into a narcissistic, petulant diva, me-first player. I can't see it and common sense SHOULD make it impossible for the rest of you not to see it for what it is.

 

[XLIX]

When you've already pulled in almost 230 million from the team in question, yeah.

The past is irrelevant. We always say it when the Patriots let a player go or offer him a lower deal than other teams. You don't pay a player for what he did yesterday, you pay him for what he's worth today.

Well guess what? That works both ways. When Tom negotiates his next deal, he should get market value for what he is worth at the time (give or take how much he is willing to sacrifice by way of home team discount). But whatever NE paid him in the past is irrelevant.

 

[Biffins]

No team would offer him 50 million that’s stupid. Someone would offer him 30-35 though.

Conor Orr of Sports Illustrated has reached out to multiple GMs anonymously and was given quotes as high as $45m. $50m might be a stretch but not by much. I am not making this stuff up.

How much would a new team pay Tom Brady in free agency?

 

[Deus Irae]

Should have said I will not be surprise if they struggle early in the season. Brady once said something that has stuck with me for a long time and it was about the importance of OTAs and getting to know the team to set the foundation for the season. Lack of acquaintance should not need an explanation.

Brady was promoting the team position. Once the team started screwing with him in his NFL dotage, he stopped parroting that line, and the team still found a way to win a Super Bowl. History has long since proven that veterans don't need to be at OTAs, or even training camps, to be effective in regular seasons. It's nice for them to be there, and Brady was all about it before certain well known recent event chains, but that's not the same thing as it being super important or essential.

What's important is having talent. I'd rather this team have high talent across the offense, and have that talent not show up until training camp, than go through OTAs all together and still have us in a position where we have to say "well, they're still weak as hell at ____", any day and twice on Sundays.

 

[Biffins]

I totally agree with you. I've read all the comments and even managed to listen to F&M for 4 minutes today. But here's the thing that they ALL seem to miss. Brady's character. They all assume that he equates MONEY with "respect". But that has NEVER been his character. So WHY have 20 years did that suddenly change????

I've read where he's made close to $250MM during the course of his time with the Pats. Over the course of the last decade, his wife has earned even more than that. He's also earned Tens of Millions in endorsement, book sales, and the TB12 brand.

I refuse to believe that in his 2oth year, after all the years of understanding that in a hard cap system, every dollar HE makes, leaves one less for the REST of the team. Money that will build a competitive team. He suddenly woke up one morning and said to himself, "F*CK everyone else, this is the year that I need get a long term commitment that shows me some RESPECT" And when they wouldn't give it to him he decided that next year he's going to take his ball and leave. Next thing we'll hear Curren say is that Brady is tired of Bill always calling him out when he makes mistakes.

See what I'm getting at here. They want me to believe that suddenly, after 20 years, Tom Brady has morphed backward into a narcissistic, petulant diva, me-first player. I can't see it and common sense SHOULD make it impossible for the rest of you not to see it for what it is.

Might I remind you, he woke up one morning summer last year and called BB/Kraft and said I am underpaid and they negotiated $5m of incentives into his contract for nothing in return for Pats. He had still made $220m at that time and his wife had still made $300m. And yet he wanted to renegotiate his contract to add $5m. $5m that would not be available "to build a competitive team" for 2019.

This isn't charity.

Tom might be reasonable but he still wants to be marked to market and get paid. And if some other team comes calling with a bundle, the Pats will have to respond with a reasonably close offer or risk Tom walking. What I am saying is just common sense.

I am just upset it might come to that. They should have locked Tom for 2 years.

 

[Biffins]

If Brady were all about allowing the team to spend money on other players, he needn't have signed for the $8M increase. He could have allowed that money to go to get us another player.
=======
I suspect that we all are a bit too extreme. Some claim Brady is all about getting a fair deal, that is, he is all about the money. Other say that he altruistic, and would accept a lowball offer in order to help the team.

BINGO. Exactly. Same point as my previous post. If Tom's all about winning, why take the $8m raise. etc etc. Isn't he worth half a billion with his wife etc.

It doesn't work that way. He might not want top dollar but he wants to be close. Top 10ish atleast. And QB salaries have skyrocketed. I have been saying that over and over. The QB market has inflated. We just need to mark Tom's contract to market.

 

[Biffins]

The past is irrelevant. We always say it when the Patriots let a player go or offer him a lower deal than other teams. You don't pay a player for what he did yesterday, you pay him for what he's worth today.

Well guess what? That works both ways. When Tom negotiates his next deal, he should get market value for what he is worth at the time (give or take how much he is willing to sacrifice by way of home team discount). But whatever NE paid him in the past is irrelevant.

Exactly. Completely agree.

It's also crazy for people to say "well Brees got scammed on a diamond deal so makes sense he wants a competitive contract but Brady has managed his finances well so should take a bigger discount"........................ WHAT??!?! Penalized for good financial management?

 

[Deus Irae]

If Brady were all about allowing the team to spend money on other players, he needn't have signed for the $8M increase. He could have allowed that money to go to get us another player.
=======
I suspect that we all are a bit too extreme. Some claim Brady is all about getting a fair deal, that is, he is all about the money. Other say that he altruistic, and would accept a lowball offer in order to help the team.

Yeah, I'm sure that situations like the one with Welker, and last off season has Tom really wanting to trust BB when it comes to that money Tom would be giving up.


Stop already.