Even so, after Brady's shoulder was drilled into the ground by Redskins defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth during Friday night's exhibition game, some of the players who were closest to the action chimed in with their thoughts on the hit.
Belichick could provide further insight this afternoon during his news conference (although it's unlikely), but until then, there's this.
Haynesworth took a flippant approach when speaking with The Washington Post: "I mean, it wasn't like I was hitting Gisele or something. He's the quarterback. It was good, it was fine. I mean, I was trying to tackle him, but I wasn't trying to hurt him. I'm not that type of player, you know? I'm actually a big Tom Brady fan. I'm a big Patriots fan. I've always liked the Patriots, I've always liked coach Belichick. I just like the way [Brady] is."
He then added, "If I had to hit him again, I would hit him again. That's my job. That's what they brought me here to do."
After taking the hit in the first half, Brady exited the game. He returned to the sidelines briefly at the beginning of the second half, then spent the rest of the night in the locker room.
According to Boston.com, Patriots tight end Chris Baker said, "Just any time you see your quarterback get hit, you're concerned …. He's a tough guy. I've seen him take hits before, and obviously, he gets back up. It was just one of those things where it was, 'Let me go get him up, and let's get off the field.'"
