It’s no secret 39-year-old Tom Brady prepares harder than most 20-somethings in the NFL, but is it possible he’s even better now than he was a decade ago?
The New England Patriots quarterback’s body coach, Alex Guerrero, thinks so.
In a recent interview with Bleacher Report’s Dan Pompei, Brady, his teammates and Guerrero discuss how the quarterback has managed to turn in one of the best seasons of his career at nearly 40 years old. Brady’s year seems even more amazing considering he missed the first four games because of suspension, but Guerrero said he and Brady were prepared for that.
“We trained harder than the sport itself demands,” Guerrero told Pompei. “The four weeks he was off, he worked really hard. He trained so when he came back, it didn’t look like he had taken four weeks off.”
And Guerrero is certainly right on that point.
Brady was gifted with a matchup against the lowly Cleveland Browns when he returned from his suspension in Week 5, but he still threw for 406 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He continued that dominance, too, going 11-1 with 3,554 yards, 28 touchdowns and just two interceptions in 12 games.
Even Brady’s teammates are impressed by the year he’s been having.
“It is unbelievable to see a 39-year-old man play like he’s 29,” wide receiver Julian Edelman said. “His body hasn’t really changed. He may have lost some hair. Other than that, he’s still the same.”
By now, most football fans have heard about the intense diet and exercise plan Brady has followed for over a decade thanks to Guerrero. Brady said working on his recovery every week has helped him stay strong and pliable, too, but Guerrero said the future Hall of Famer uses some other methods to motivate himself.
“We don’t train with the idea he is already the starting quarterback,” Guerrero said. “Every year, he’s working to be the starting quarterback, and he’s got to work hard to do that. He always talks about it. Every year there is going to be somebody there that is going to outwork me if I don’t continue to work hard. So in his mind, he has to keep working hard in order to continue to perform at the level he has or to improve.”
Thumbnail photo via Reinhold Matay/USA TODAY Sports Images
