Jason Licht, general manager of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, said he would be “delighted”, as was coach Bruce Arians, if they could strike a deal that would keep Tom Brady on the team after the quarterback’s two-year contract expires. . after the 2021 season.
Light said in The Rich Eisen Show Agreeing to a contract extension for Brady is one option, but he declined to discuss the details of his conversations with Don Yee, Brady’s agent, when asked about it in the Bucs’ pre-combined and free agency video conference.
“Bruce and I have a good relationship with Tom and I have a good relationship with his agent,” said Licht. “Tom played incredibly well this year, as did the whole team. We would really like Tom to play here, and I can speak for Bruce as long as he wants to keep playing. If that happens, we’d be ecstatic, but I want to keep those conversations private for now. “
Brady, 43, will make $ 25 million next season. He previously said his goal was to play until the age of 45, but in the week leading up to the Super Bowl, he indicated that he would like to play longer. If he adds another year to his two-year contract with the Bucs, he will stay with the team until the age of 45.
Not only would a new contract provide longer term stability in the quarterback position, it would help the Buccaneers in their cap position. They have less than $ 30 million in space, with several high-profile agents to be rehired, including catcher Chris Gowdin, inside linebacker Lavonte David, outside linebacker Shaquil Barrett, tight side Rob Gronkowski, catcher Antonio Brown, and running back. Leonard Fournette.
In light of uncertainty as to whether there will be an off-season schedule, Arians said he expects Brady will recover from knee surgery after the Super Bowl and be ready to train in the early summer. In the absence of an activity schedule, the team can rely on Brady’s organized workouts, similar to what he led at Tampa’s Berkeley Prep last summer.
“He (Brady) will probably start training around June,” Arians said. “Because of his leadership, he doesn’t have to pitch, he can be there and coach (his teammates). Wherever they meet and where they work, I look forward to working with the younger players out of season. Tom doesn’t need it, but freshmen, sophomores and juniors do, (because) we’ve lost two years of development to where we are now. We don’t have to lose another ”.
Light also said he “hopes” center Ryan Jensen and left tackle Donovan Smith are back next season. Both are under contract, but neither has guaranteed money. With Smith slated to count $ 14.5 million up to the 2021 salary cap and Jensen up to $ 10 million, there has been speculation they will be low to find caproom, but the Bucs were excited about their performance at the end of the regular season and in the Playoffs.
“We love Ryan and Donovan. They played a vital role in our attack, in protection and in running, ”said Licht. “We see Ryan and Donovan in this team. We are waiting for you, we do not just see you ”.