Tom Brady‘s recent restructure dropped his 2022 cap number from $24M to $13.8M, giving the Buccaneers more wiggle room this year. Brady’s redone contract now calls for a $1.1M base salary and $13.88M roster bonus. They now have more than $10M in cap space.
Tampa Bay’s move will also add to the escalating Brady debt while also restricting the team’s avenues to hang onto the all-time great beyond this season. Although it is not certain the 44-year-old quarterback will want to play in 2023, Ben Volin of the Boston Globe notes the restructure prevents the Bucs from using the franchise or transition tags on Brady. The deal also includes $4.5M worth of 2022 incentives, Volin adds.
The Bucs have not discussed another Brady extension as he remains on track for free agency in 2023. Matters like Brady’s desire to play an age-46 season, his performance at 45 and potential interest from other teams will factor into that process. Brady’s restructure took one option off the table for the Bucs, though the tag might have been an untenable measure anyway thanks to the deal’s void years.
This restructure adds more money to Brady’s first void year, raising that 2023 cap hit from $24M to $35M. Brady’s void years now run through 2026, piling up potential dead-money charges. Unless Brady agrees to another extension with the Bucs, they will be hit with those fees beginning next year.
Brady had been connected to the Dolphins and 49ers, and though it sounds crazy to speculate on an NFLer venturing into Bernard Hopkins territory as a late-40s contact-sport athlete, Brady’s 2023 free agency will certainly be a topic of conversation. Brady’s restructure stands to help the Bucs mount another run this season, potentially with Rob Gronkowski and Ndamukong Suh back on board, but it also moves the 23rd-year veteran closer to a 2023 exit — even if retirement No. 2 does not happen by that point.
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