Four-year extension to make Brady richest in NFL

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - Two people with knowledge of the contract say Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has agreed to a four-year extension that would make him the NFL's highest-paid player.

The extension begins in 2011 at an average of $18 million per year with a total of $48.5 million guaranteed, one of those persons said. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because the paperwork had not been filed with the NFL.

Brady is making $6.5 million this season in the final year of a six-year deal. Sports Illustrated's Peter King first reported the extension last night during halftime of NBC's telecast of the Vikings-Saints game.

The agreement was reached the same day Brady was involved in a two-car crash at around 6:30 a.m. near his home in Boston. Seven hours later, all appeared normal as he practiced with the Patriots for Sunday's opener against the Bengals. Brady participated in a walkthrough at 10:45 a.m. Then he was on the field with his teammates for the full practice shortly after 1 p.m. He did not speak to reporters.

The crash, at an intersection in Boston's Back Bay area, knocked over a light pole and sent a passenger in the other vehicle to the hospital with injuries that were serious but not considered life-threatening, a police report said.

A witness told AP that Brady was approaching the intersection on a green light when his black Audi sedan collided with a minivan. Ludgero Rodrigues, the minivan's driver, was cited for failing to stop at a red light, based on witnesses' statements. The police report, which did not name Brady, said the driver of the Audi had no visible injuries.

Rodrigues' license had been suspended at least five times in three years, a Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles spokeswoman said.