The New England Patriots want to bring Tom Brady back next year, and a report from last weekend indicated they are willing to spend big money to make that happen. Whether that report is true or not, the team is apparently annoyed that it surfaced.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reported on Sunday that the Patriots are prepared to offer Brady a contract of $30 million or more, presumably for one year. We probably won’t know how accurate that is unless Brady re-signs with New England, and we may never know if he winds up with another team. However, Tom E. Curran of NBC Sports Boston said the Patriots are irritated by the $30 million report.
Curran adds that no parameters have been set and Brady has not discussed financial particulars with the Patriots. As we have said all along, Brady probably cares more about his supporting cast and having more offensive weapons around him than he did this past season, but there may be no way for New England to prove they are planning to go out and get those pieces if Brady waits until the start of free agency to sign a new deal.
One line of thinking was that the report from Rapoport came from someone within the Patriots organization, as it would allow the team to say they did everything they could to bring Brady back in the event that the 42-year-old quarterback signs elsewhere. But if the Patriots are annoyed that the report got out, it doesn’t seem like that is the case.
We have heard a lot of information about the Brady situation that sounds like good news for Patriots fans, but all options remain on the table. If Brady tests free agency as expected, that will likely make it more difficult for the Pats to bring him back.
