While it may seem a little surprising, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is not the highest-paid NFL player. In fact, he isn’t even in the top 10, according to sports team resource website Spotrac . But he is okay with that partly because his wife, supermodel Gisele Bündchen, happens to make a pretty good salary.
During an interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live , posted on YouTube , the six-time Super Bowl champion explained why not being the highest earner doesn’t really bother him.
“I think the thing I’ve always felt for me in my life, winning has been a priority. And my wife makes a lot of money,” he said, smiling.
He went on to explain that there was another reason why he chooses not to command a high salary — and it had to do with sharing a little bit with his teammates.
“I’m a little smarter than you think. Actually, it’s a salary cap. You can only spend so much and the more that one guy gets is less for others. And for a competitive advantage standpoint, I like to get a lot of good players around me,” he elaborated.
Kimmel weighed in and said that he hoped that the Patriots appreciated that he did that, to which Brady replied, “They do.”
According to sports salary analysis website Over The Cap , Brady earns $15 million a year, which is almost half of what Matt Stafford of the Detroit Lions and Kirk Cousins of the Minnesota Vikings make at $29.5 million and $29 million, respectively.
As for Bündchen, she has retired from modeling, but she still ranks in the top 10 highest-paid models in the world, according to Forbes . She reportedly tied for fifth place from 2017 to 2018 with a salary of $10 million. However, before she retired she was the world’s highest-paid model, earning as much as $17.5 million a year, according to Boston.com .
Patriots QB Tom Brady explains his relatively low salary: ‘My wife makes a lot of money’ https://t.co/ZzZPYs3ti2 pic.twitter.com/kmVExzciJN
— Around The NFL (@AroundTheNFL) May 3, 2019
Brady also said that he had no plans of retiring just yet. When asked if he ever felt like he’d had enough of the sport, he said no.
“Not to this point,” Brady said, adding that to be able to give his team a chance to win every season took a lot of work.
“I try to bring my best every day. I try to be the best teammate, leader and also physically to stay prepared,” he said.
He also said that he would try again next season to go after another Super Bowl victory because, as a competitor, he liked to win.
