Brady inks extension with Pats

Happy Birthday, Tom! As for the rest of the NFL, look the other way.

The legendary Patriots quarterback on Sunday agreed to a two-year extension with the Patriots, according to multiple reports, just a day after turning 42 years old.

The pact is worth $23 million this season, while his salary moving forward will reportedly be amendable. It’s a win for both sides, as Brady gets a bump in pay while the Patriots will receive $5.5 million of extra salary-cap space.

Brady, who has repeatedly said his goal is to play until age 45, has shown few signs of slowing down. The 20year veteran, who is coming off his sixth Super Bowl title, threw for 29 touchdowns versus 11 interceptions last season and has been mostly healthy aside from a torn ACL in 2008.

Brady was set to make $14 million in base salary this season while carrying a $27 million cap hit in the final year of his previous deal. His new contract makes him the sixth-highest-paid quarterback in the league; Russell Wilson, at $35 million per year, ranks atop that list while Eli Manning ($21 million) comes in at No. 18.

When asked about his future with the Patriots last week, Brady turned into a jokester.

“Have I earned [an extension]? I don’t know,” he told reporters. “That’s up for talk show debate. What do you guys think? Should we take a poll?

“I appreciate this team and the opportunity it gave me in 2000,” Brady said Wednesday. “I play for a great coach in Coach [Bill] Belichick, and [offensive coordinator] Josh [McDaniels] and I have a great working relationship. I love Mr. [Robert] Kraft and his family. We’ve had just incredible success. Hopefully we can keep it going.”

Brady will try for another ring without one of his most trusted targets over the past decade in Rob Gronkowski, who retired at the end of last season at 29 years old.