Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback and seven-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady took a leave from training camp earlier this week for “personal reasons.”
At least initially, there was some concern that something was off in his personal and family life. That proved not to be the case in short order.
We’re now hearing more about Brady’s absence as Tampa Bay opens up its preseason action against the Miami Dolphins Saturday evening.
According to Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times, Brady and his family came to an agreement that he would take some time off during the summer when the future Hall of Fame quarterback opted to come out of his short-lived retirement.
Here’s what we know. The scheduled absence has nothing to do with Brady’s or his family members’ health.
Brady’s mother, Galynn, is a cancer survivor. His father, Tom Sr., fought a scary battle with COVID-19 last year that led to his hospitalization. Both are fine.
Report on Tom Brady’s absence
Brady and his wife have three children, ages between nine and 14. He took that situation into account when deciding to retire in the first place before opting to return for another NFL season.
“It’s very challenging when you’re 43 or 44 because there are a lot of other things that are pressing and a lot of other things that are really important in your life, like your kids and your wife and different relationships,” Tom Brady told reporters during mandatory minicamp. “Things have always taken a back seat to football. That’s just how it has gone for me. I have a very tricky, complex life in different aspects and I’m just trying to navigate it the best way I can.”
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No concern over Tom Brady being absence from Tampa Bay Buccaneers training camp
It was already known ahead of camp that Brady would be taking some time off. Entering his 23rd season in the NFL, the star quarterback doesn’t necessarily need summer reps outide of getting to know new players such as tight end Kyle Rudolph and wide receiver Julio Jones. In fact, he wasn’t going to play in either of the first two preseason games anway.
For new Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles, it’s more about catering to Brady to an extent and making sure that the 45-year-old veteran is locked in when Week 1 gets going against the Dallas Cowboys.
“He’s going to deal with some personal things,” Bowles said earlier in the week. “This is something we talked about before training camp started. We allotted this time because he wanted to get in and get chemistry with the guys and go through two weeks of training camp.”
It’s not like we can question Brady’s work ethic. His workout program and diet are both considered legendary. As an aside, Tom Terrific looked like he was in his mid 20s in dominating opposing defenses last season.
- Tom Brady stats (2021): 68% completion, 5,316 yards, 43 TD, 12 INT, 102.1 QB rating
For now, it’s going to be all about veteran Blaine Gabbert and youngster Kyle Trask getting reps in Brady’s stead. From an on-field perspective, it’s one of the reasons he opted to take a leave during camp.
In no way will this have an impact on Tom Brady as he looks to lead Tampa Bay to a second Super Bowl title in three seasons with the team. He’s simply just looking to find a balance between football and his personal life.
“I know I don’t have a lot left, I really do. I know I’m at the end of my career. I wish you could go forever, but it’s just not and football comes at too high of a cost now. My kids are getting older and it’s just getting harder and harder to miss these things. But, I wanted to give myself and my teammates and our organization another incredible opportunity to accomplish something that we’d all be very proud of.”
Tom Brady after decision to unretire
Brady will be on the field when Tampa Bay opens up its regular season slate against Dallas on Sunday Night Football come September 11. This is all that matters.