According to a report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Tom Brady has signed a contract extension with the Patriots until 2019 — when he will be 42 years old.  The Patriots would be smart to ink the deal.  Yes, 42 years old is a late age to be playing professional football. For most people in the NFL, I’d say: Hey man, fishing is a lovely hobby. And I heard you want to open a recording studio. That’s cool. Try that. Life is a journey.  But Tom Brady is a different player, Bill Belichick is a different coach, and the new rules have made it possible for a quarterback to extend his career longer than ever before … especially one with as quick a release as Brady.  Peyton Manning just won a Super Bowl at age 39, after multiple neck surgeries … which Brady has not had. Manning showed us in the playoffs how vital a quarterback’s brain is to his success — Manning couldn’t throw a ball 50 yards, but he understood NFL defenses, made pre-snap reads, called audibles, and ran the Broncos’ offense. He couldn’t make all the throws but it didn’t matter because he gave his team the best chance to win.  The only quarterback in the NFL who understands how to run an offense as well as Manning is Brady. This year, with a team hampered by injuries on both sides of the ball, Brady put together one of his greatest seasons ever … at age 38.  He was able to do that with his pre-snap reads, understanding coverages and firing off the ball quickly to open receivers. Whatever defenses threw at him, he was ready.  The new rules helped him, too. Defensive players don’t dive at quarterback’s knees anymore — at least not as much as they used to. Vicious late hits on quarterbacks, once the norm, are a rarity. Defensive players know you can’t send a message, not on the quarterback, lest you want to cost your team a big penalty and possibly be ejected from the game.  Brady is in great shape, he’s got a coaching staff that knows him well, and he’s got the mind — and the quick release — to keep doing this. It may go one day of course, and if a bad injury happens, that may be it. But the Patriots are smart to keep him around.  He’s one of the two greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game. If he’s still doing it, you don’t question it. You pay him, and you let him lead your team.
When you have Brady’s mind — and his quick release — what’s to stop you from playing into your 40s?