Someday, we might get Tom Brady’s full side of the Deflategate story. Just don’t expect that day to come soon.
The New England Patriots quarterback spoke to reporters Sunday for the first time since having his four-game suspension erased, and while he said a lot, he didn’t really say much. It was more of the same Tuesday morning in an interview on WEEI’s “Dennis & Callahan.”
Brady wouldn’t get into many specifics about the past seven months, but he actually expressed some regrets about potentially taking away from the Patriots’ Super Bowl celebration over the offseason.
“I’m sorry that whatever has happened has taken the focus away from my team and what we accomplished last year,” Brady said on WEEI. “I think that it should have been a very joyous offseason, and I’m sure it was for a lot of people, and it was for me at times, but like I said, some of those things are pretty personal.”
Here are some more highlights from the interview.
Brady on his father calling a radio station to defend him: “I love my dad, and like any protective father … it gets pretty emotional. He’s been a great support my entire life, and I’m sure it’s been hard for him, my mom and anyone in my entire family, as it has for me. … It’s been a challenging seven months, but I think it will be pretty excited to run out their with my teammates. I’m sure he’ll be pretty excited, too.”
On the difficulty of the offseason: “Sometimes in life you think at the hardest times in the life, those are the things you learn from the most. Sometimes you wonder if you go through hard times if those end up being bad things. I think those are things that probably shaped who I am and what I believe.”
On whether he’d now be less likely to cooperate with outlets like ESPN: “I think that’s probably a pretty natural feeling to have. I don’t know exactly how I’ll approach those things each week. A lot of it for me, especially this offseason, was to conserve my energy the best I possibly can.”
On whether he’d like to see Jim McNally and John Jastremski return to the Patriots: “Of course. None of those things are my decision, but I feel terrible for what they’ve been put through and what their families have been put through.”
On the Patriots’ decision to not unveil the Super Bowl banner if Brady was suspended: “They’ve been like family to me for 16 years. They’ve always been protective of myself. It was flattering when they said that. I was unaware of that. I’m happy that’s not the case. … Their family has been incredible to me, to my family. I’m proud to go out there and represent (the organization) every week.”
Thumbnail photo via Winslow Townson/USA TODAY Sports Images
