Tom Brady has confirmed that he plans to continue playing for the New England Patriots in the 2018 NFL season and hopes to come back "a better player".

The legendary quarterback is still under contract with the franchise but, at the age of 40, had not yet committed to extending his career.

However, asked directly at the Milken Institute Global Conference in California, Brady said: "Yes, I will be playing.

"I have personal goals. I want to keep playing. I've said for a long time that I want to play to my mid-40s. I was told for three years, when I was 36 to 37, 'you can't keep playing, no-one wins Super Bowls [at that age].'

"It's a great challenge for me. I think I've been challenged my whole life. I feel like I can do it."

The five-time Super Bowl champion clarified his intentions for the coming year, stating that he will be carrying on but also needs to give his family more attention.

"Part of this off-season, for me, is certainly about still preparing for what's ahead in my next journey, my next mountain to climb with this group of teammates," Brady said

"But it's also [acknowledging] that a lot of people are getting the short end of the stick in my life - certainly my wife and my kids.

"Football is year-round for me. It's a lot of thought, a lot of energy and emotion put into it, but I need to invest in them, too. My kids are 10, eight and five. They're not getting younger, so I need to take time so I can be available to them, too. 

"I've really spent the last two or three months doing those things and I think I'm really trying to fill my tank up so that when I do go back, I can go back and I think I'll actually be, in my mind, a better player, a better teammate, because I'll be really rejuvenated."