The New England Patriots are going to miss Tom Brady on the field, but for Julian Edelman and others, the impact will be felt off it as well.
The receiver spoke about what it’s going to be like spending the first four weeks of the season without Brady.
“I’m not going to lie, it’s like one of your buddies going to jail,” Edelman said Sunday, via Mike Reiss of ESPN. “It’s one of those type of things, and the whole situation is unfortunate, but it’s happened and we have to move on. Love him to death — on the field, off the field, he’s been a great help in my life. But we have to deal with the situation, and right now the situation is thinking about the Arizona Cardinals and who’s going to be out there to play against these guys.”
Brady fought the NFL for months regarding his involvement in the so-called Deflategate scandal. Ultimately, he decided against taking his case to the Supreme Court and chose to accept the punishment, rather than drag out the inevitable any longer.
The Patriots have made no bones about their anger with the NFL for the unprecedented punishment doled out by commissioner Roger Goodell on this matter (more on that here).
Brady’s teammates have also made a point many times of speaking up in support of their quarterback.
But perhaps nobody has been able to capture the mood of the clubhouse as the season begins without Brady than Edelman did here.
It’s going to be interesting to see how the Patriots fare without him for the first four weeks of the season. Jimmy Garoppolo has been solid this preseason and shouldn’t be a huge liability.
They face the Cardinals in Week 1 on the road then travel back home for three games in a row against the Miami Dolphins, Houston Texans and Buffalo Bills.