Tom Brady doesn't merely lead teams to Super Bowl wins on the field. He helps keep together championship teams that have salary cap issues.
So sackmaster Shaq Barrett, fellow standout linebacker Lavonte David — and who knows who else — will remain in Tampa Bay. Just as he had done several times in New England, Brady reworked his big-ticket contract last week to free up money in free agency.
The Buccaneers used it to keep David, and on Monday, the first day of “legal tampering” before the business year begins on Wednesday, the 28-year-old Barrett agreed to a four-year, $72 million contract with $36 million guaranteed, agent Drew Rosenhaus confirmed Monday.