Once again, Tom Brady has put his money where his mouth is.

The Patriots quarterback has heaped praise on wide receiver Wes Welker over the last few seasons, and now, with the announcement Monday that he has re-done his deal, he has given New England a terrific opportunity to keep Welker around for the next several seasons.

For the second time in his career, the Patriots quarterback has reworked his deal in hopes of trying to give his team more flexibility under the salary cap. According to Peter King of Sports Illustrated, Brady has agreed to a three-year $27 million extension -- one ridiculously below market value -- that should make life considerably easier for the Patriots as they head into an offseason full of key personnel decisions.

King reports that Brady will get a $3 million signing bonus immediately, and will play for base salaries of $7 million in 2015, $8 million in 2016 and $9 million in 2017. As far as base salaries go, it’s amazingly low when compared to other starting quarterbacks -- his reworked deal comes at a time when quarterbacks like Peyton Manning and Drew Brees are already at the $20 million a year plateau, while Joe Flacco heads into an offseason where he could join them in that rarified air.

(By way of historical comparison, in 2005 after the Patriots' third Super Bowl title in four years, Brady agreed to a six-year, $60 million deal, considerably less than the deal roughly $14 million a year that Manning was earning at the time.)

According to Albert Breer of the NFL Network, the Patriots cleared $15 million in cap space with the move, and now have well over $30 million to work with over the next two years. With Brady’s cap number shaved down, New England has more financial flexibility to focus on several unrestricted free agents, including wide receiver Wes Welker, right tackle Sebastian Vollmer and cornerback Aqib Talib.

Not to take anything away from Vollmer and Talib, but the news is particularly interesting considering Welker’s situation. The receiver was facing another offseason of contract uncertainty -- he was a possible contract casualty, or could have been a candidate to get hit with the franchise tag for a second season. But with Brady’s move, it gives New England an opportunity to offer Welker a bigger deal without leaving them hamstrung for the next few years.

You never know what sort of impact Brady has when it comes to the team-building process, and he’s always been very careful to downplay his role in personnel decisions. But there’s the very real likelihood that the quarterback made this move with Welker specifically in mind. The two are not only great teammates, but extremely close friends. (They go on vacation together, for goodness sakes.) The idea of the quarterback potentially being forced to start over with another receiver -- whether it was Danny Amendola, Percy Harvin or Tavon Auston -- who was shoehorned into a situation where they were trying to replicate Welker’s impact couldn’t have sat well with the quarterback.

While Brady does a good job paying lip service when it comes to complimenting his teammates, there’s a genuine sense of respect when it comes to the relationship he has with the undersized wide receiver.

“Nothing surprises me with Wes,” Brady said after an October 2011 win over the Raiders. “He’s the heart and soul of this team. He’s been that way since the day he got here. He works his tail off. He’s a great player, great teammate. He’s become a real dynamic player over the years. He’s made some huge plays for us; he’s clutch, tough, mentally tough, physically tough. He’s awesome.”

As for Brady, this deal will keep him in a New England uniform until the age of 40. And while everyone sort of chuckled when he first broached the idea of playing that long, he has proven himself to be perhaps the best thirtysomething quarterback of all time (more on that here). As a result, as long as he stays healthy, there’s no reason he couldn’t replicate the late-career performances of quarterbacks like Warren Moon (who played until he was 44) or his childhood hero Joe Montana, who was 38 in his final season in the NFL. The only difference? While Montana had to finish his career as a Kansas City Chief, it appears now that Brady will be able to finish where he started. 

One more thing -- it will be interesting to see how this affects the Patriots and their backup quarterback situation. The 24-year-old Ryan Mallett has spent two seasons in the New England system, and there was a belief in some circles that he would be Brady’s heir apparent, the Aaron Rodgers to Brady’s Brett Favre. Now, against the backdrop of a quarterback-starved league this offseason and armed with the knowledge that Brady will be in New England to 2017 (which is when his new deal runs out), the Patriots might be more inclined to deal the youngster to one of several possible suitors. At the least, the certainty that Brady is on board for the long-term at a reasonable contract gives the Patriots increased flexibility to operate from a position of strength, whether negotiating with Welker (and/or other receivers) or potentially dealing someone like Mallett.