Among all of the things the Patriots should appreciate Tom Brady for, selflessness and a commitment to the team’s best interest should rank near the top.
Brady showcased these admirable assets in May 2005, roughly three months after leading New England to its third Super Bowl championship in four seasons. Now established as one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks, Brady had an opportunity to break the bank with a contract extension ahead of his fifth season as Patriots starting quarterback.
A dragged-out negotiation between Don Yee, Brady’s longtime agent, and Scott Pioli, New England’s then-vice president of player personnel, ensued. And after too much time passed without a deal for Brady’s liking, the legendary signal-caller took matters into his own hands.
“I’ll never forget — Don and I couldn’t get anywhere and Tommy was getting annoyed.” Pioli said on a recent episode of Julian Edelman’s “Games With Names” podcast. “Not anyone with anyone. He just wanted to think about ball. One morning he comes up to my office, he knocks and comes in, closes the door and said, ‘Hey, can we talk about this contract?’ ‘Tommy, we can’t have a negotiation. It’s against the rules.’ He said, ‘Where are you guys at?’ So I told him where we were at, I told him where you guys were at. He says, ‘What’s the drop-dead number?’ I said, ‘Tommy, we can’t have this conversation. I got to talk to Don about this.’
“The deal he signed — I think it was the six-year, $60 million. We’re having this negotiation where one side is low and one side is high and you’re trying to find the middle. Tommy looks at me, shakes his head and said, ‘If I can’t live the rest of my life off $60 million and my family, I’ve got problems.’ He’s like, ‘Get Don on the phone.’ I was like, ‘Tom, we can’t do this.’ He’s like, ‘Get him on the phone.’ We got on the phone, he put it on speaker and goes, ‘Hey, Don. It’s Tom. I got you on speakerphone. I’m in Scott’s office.’ Dead silence. Don’s like, ‘What are you doing there?’ He’s like, ‘Don, this is ridiculous. Just get this done.’”
Piolio acknowledged Yee “could have made so much more money” if he hadn’t followed Brady’s direction and pressed the Patriots for a richer contract. This wasn’t a one-off, either, as Brady took team-friendly deals throughout his two-decade run in New England.
Those sacrifices were crucial to the Patriots, as it helped Bill Belichick and company build six Super Bowl-winning teams.