Tom Brady speaks openly on knee injury, flu going around Patriots locker room
Tom Brady throws a pass against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. (Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports)
By Matt Dolloff, 985TheSportsHub.com
Obviously, every player in the NFL is dealing with something injury-related at this point in the season. It’s more about the degree of injury. The same can be said for Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, but for him it’s extreme. It took a damn torn ACL to finally take him off the field due to injury.
This year, Brady is dealing with another knee issue, but certainly something far less severe than his season-ending ACL tear a decade ago. It’s just uncommon to hear Brady speak as openly about the injury as he did in his Monday interview with Westwood One’s Jim Gray.
Usually, you get some variation of “Everyone’s dealing with something,” and you get it here too. But Brady admitted that he’s been limited in practice by his knee injury, and hopes that it will heal while he continues to play and – hopefully – avoids further injury.
“I’m certainly doing better this week,” said Brady. “We had the game against Tennessee where I got a little nicked up and then had the bye week and was hoping to have a full week of practice, and it just didn’t allow for it. I think a lot of NFL players are nursing things at this point. I’m nursing a couple of little things. I’m feeling a lot better. A little flu has been going around, but I’m feeling a lot better and hopefully I really turned the corner with my knee this week.”
Nov 25, 2018; East Rutherford, NJ: New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady drops back to pass against the New York Jets during the first quarter at MetLife Stadium. (Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports)
Ultimately, Brady doesn’t see much of a point in resting on Sunday. Technically, he’s always a hit away from another major injury, and he remains the Patriots’ most important player. So like you’d expect, sitting really isn’t a consideration at this point.
“My take on injuries is, you’re really susceptible every time you go out,” said Brady. “You can go out and you can be a little nicked up, and if you get hit again you could make it worse. But the reality is you could wait for it to be fully healthy and then go out and take a hit and get hurt again.
“Really, if I can play, that’s what I’m always going to prefer to do and that’s what I’ve always done, realizing that there are risks that come with playing when you’re not fully healthy or things aren’t fully healed. That’s just part of the nature of the game. I think in many ways it would hurt me more to not be playing and watching than it would to be dealing with whatever I’m dealing with.”
There’s clearly been a flu outbreak rifling through the Patriots locker room in recent weeks. Trent Brown and Deatrich Wise have been listed on the injury report with illnesses, in addition to Brady’s bout with the flu. Cornerback Stephon Gilmore also appeared to be dealing with something in Week 10, when he had an uncharacteristically poor performance against the Titans.
The hope now is that whole flu thing is behind the team. But Brady speaking so openly about his knee injury is a bit of a departure for him, and perhaps cause for concern down the stretch. It’s obviously not going to keep him off the field, though, and it didn’t appear to affect him too much against the Titans (season-high 115.4 passer rating). It’s just something to monitor, especially considering how willing Brady is to admit that it’s bothered him lately.
Listen to the full interview below:
Matt Dolloff is a digital producer for 985TheSportsHub.com. Any opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of 98.5 The Sports Hub, Beasley Media Group, or any subsidiaries. Have a news tip, question, or comment for Matt? Follow him on Twitter @mattdolloff or email him at matthew.dolloff@bbgi.com.
