Just over six hours into the legal tampering period a number of free agents have already agreed to terms, but not the biggest -- Tom Brady.
There really hasn't been any substantial news relating to the quarterback, although it does appear his market is not as big as he expected. And relating to the Patriots, there doesn't appear to be much progress on a new deal at all.
If he signs before Wednesday and the new league year his cap hit would be just $6.75 million, but if it's after that date it is $13.5 million. Timing-wise it makes sense for Brady to re-sign before Wednesday, but there are no indications that will actually happen.
Here is the latest news, as of Monday night.
-- NFL Media's Ian Rapoport said earlier in the day as of now the teams showing interest are the Chargers, Buccaneers and Patriots.
-- NFL Media's Mike Giardi reported the Buccaneers have made their intentions to Brady "loud and clear." It's been reported they are going all in on Brady.
-- On NFL Network, Michael Irvin said he knows for a fact the Chargers are going after Brady.
-- According to ESPN's Dianna Russini, “nobody knows what Brady is going to do."
Based on what the Patriots have already done (re-signing Devin McCourty and Matthew Slater and placing the franchise tag on Joe Thuney), the team really doesn't have much money left to spend on the quarterback, especially if he wants to be paid like some of the best quarterbacks in the league. If Brady comes back, it likely isn't going to be at the money figure he wanted.
Now, he could sign elsewhere (Tampa or Los Angeles) for big money, but are those teams he really wants to play for, or would he just be going there out of spite?
It is a bit of a surprise some teams searching for quarterbacks (Bears, Colts) aren't in on Brady considering what his market currently is. The Bears reportedly have been talking about trades for Andy Dalton or Nick Foles, so why not change course and go after Brady? And isn't Brady a better option than Philip Rivers for the Colts?
There wasn't much real news on Brady Monday and it's likely because the QB doesn't even know himself. He and his representation will spend the next day or so going over options, maybe hoping for more, and then likely more will be known by later Tuesday and Wednesday.
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