Tom Brady has two years left on his contract. His $22 million salary cap hit ranks 11th among all quarterbacks in 2018 and falls to 14th in 2019. By comparison, his former backup Jimmy Garoppolo, who was traded to the 49ers last October, tops the list at $37 million. Put another way: It's easy to make the argument that Brady, who has as many Super Bowl wins as Garoppolo has starts for San Francisco, deserves a raise.

But Patriots owner Robert Kraft has no such concerns.

"He'll be 41 when the season starts," Kraft told The Athletic's's Jeff Howe. "Neither side has an issue with it. If it becomes an issue, we'll deal with it."

Brady, who threw for 4,577 yards last season and won his third NFL MVP award, remains one of the league's best players -- even as one of its oldest. It's worth noting that four of Brady's five previous contract extensions came with two years left on his deal and the one time it didn't happen the quarterback was coming off a 2008 ACL injury that ended his season after just one game.

Back in January, following an ESPN report of a power struggle between Bill Belichick, Kraft and Brady, the quarterback quickly came the defense of both the coach and owner.

"He is a great person, man. He has been like a second father to me in so many ways," Brady said of Kraft at the time. "I have a great relationship with Coach Belichick. We've worked together for 18 years. There's no coach I'd rather play for, and I've loved my experience here. I certainly couldn't be the player I am today without playing for such a great coach. So I see these as all positive things."

Days before Super Bowl LII, Kraft was asked if Brady, who turns 41 in August and has previously said he'd like to play until he's 45, would return in 2018. "I appreciate you asking that question and I'm not going to respond to it," Kraft said. "You'll just have to see for yourself."

Months later, the owner was again asked if he expected Brady to play into his mid-40s.

"I hope he plays," Kraft said. "He's at a different point in his life. He talked about it. It's interesting to see that Tom vs. Time and see where he's at, his kids growing up. But that is something for he and his family to decide what is right for him.

"Me personally, I'd like to see him play as long as he can. I don't think anyone would have believed 10 years ago that he would have played this year, gone to the Super Bowl and been MVP of the league at 40 years old. It's just unbelievable. It speaks to the way he takes care of himself, the way he trains, how much film he watches, one of the hardest working guys. He is driven to excel. I think as long as he feels he is like that, he'll keep playing. We're so lucky to have him in our system."

We'll have to wait to see if Brady gets another contract extension but one thing he won't have to worry about is his wife pressuring him to retire. In a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Gisele Bündchen said, "It's not my decision to make, it's his decision, and he knows it. It wouldn't be fair any other way."

Which means that Brady could now decide to play until he's 50.