Brady not looking too far ahead
Even with a new contract, Tom Brady faces some uncertainty about his future.
At his age, that’s hard to avoid.
“I’m ready to go this year and that’s really what matters. That’s where my focus is,” Brady said. “It’s a unique situation I’m in. I’m in my 20th year with the same team. I’m 42 years old, so pretty much uncharted territory I think for everybody. I’m going to go out there and do the best I can this year and see what happens.”
Brady agreed to a two-year, $70 million extension through 2021 that includes an $8 million raise in 2019, a person with knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Sunday because the Patriots hadn’t announced the extension. ESPN, citing an unidentified source, reported that 2020 and 2021 are void years, and that Brady and the Patriots would need to negotiate further on those if he plays beyond this season.
“There’s a lot of guys who have one year left on their contract,” Brady said. “I’ve got one year to go and we’ll see what happens.”
The Patriots are in Michigan this week, holding joint practices with the Lions in preparation for a preseason game at Detroit on Thursday night. Brady turned 42 on Saturday. Fresh off his sixth Super Bowl title, he’s shown little sign of fading at this stage of his career.
He’s said he wants to play until he’s 45. He’d be one year shy of that at the end of the 2021 season.
“You’ve got to take care of your body. I wrote a book on it, literally. I live by it and I think it’s given me pretty good results,” Brady said. “I try to pass it on to the next generation so they don’t have to go on through the same mistakes that I did, but everyone learns different ways. Hopefully, I can be an inspiration.”
The New York Jets have acquired offensive lineman Alex Lewis from the Baltimore Ravens for a conditional seventhround pick in next year’s NFL draft.
The deal Monday is pending a physical. Lewis was recently taken off the Ravens’ physically unable to perform list with a shoulder injury.
He started 10 games at guard last season for the Ravens and can also play tackle, giving the Jets added depth on the offensive line.
The 27-year-old Lewis was a fourthround pick of Baltimore in 2016 out of Nebraska. He has dealt with several injuries during his short NFL career, including missing two games last season with a neck ailment. Lewis was sidelined the entire 2017 season with an injured shoulder and missed six weeks as a rookie with a sprained ankle.
The Panthers hope less means more for Christian Mccaffrey in 2019.
Offensive coordinator Norv Turner wants to increase Mccaffrey’s touches this season while reducing the number of plays he’s on the field after the running back racked up a franchise-record 1,965 yards from scrimmage.
“He told me he was going to give me the ball more and that’s music my ears. I got excited,” Mccaffrey said.
The 23-year-old Mccaffrey had 1,098 yards rushing on 219 carries and 867 yards receiving on 107 receptions in 2018 — the most ever in a single season by an NFL running back — and earned secondteam All-pro honors.