Tom Brady didn’t get to fully enjoy his fourth Super Bowl title.
I know, boo hoo, let’s all feel bad for the millionaire quarterback who gets to go home to a supermodel. But seriously, Brady has had the Deflategate cloud hanging over his head ever since the New England Patriots punched a ticket to the Super Bowl by beating the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship Game.
More than seven months later, somehow Deflategate still isn’t settled, which is why Brady hasn’t spoken to the media since a scheduled appearance at Salem State in May.
Brady didn’t directly address the media Tuesday night, but he spoke to the crowd gathered at Patriots Premiere, the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation’s annual gala, according to CSNNE.com’s Mike Giardi.
“It’s been such an enjoyable offseason,” Brady said sarcastically when former Patriots backup quarterback Scott Zolak, the event’s emcee, asked him to name “the coolest thing they did” after the Super Bowl, via Giardi.
Brady should know if he’s starting in Week 1 of the Patriots’ regular season — and if his four-game suspension will be upheld or thrown out — by the end of this week. U.S. District Court Judge Richard Berman said Tuesday in an order that “The Court anticipates issuing its Decision and Order by the end of the week” regarding Brady’s appeal of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s decision to uphold the suspension.
It wasn’t all sarcasm from the Patriots quarterback Tuesday night. He also discussed the lessons he tries to instill in his younger teammates.
“The commitment the players make, and the commitment the coaches make to try to establish such a high level of play year in and year out is something I’ve really learned from being here,” Brady said. “I try to pass those things on to the next generation of great Patriot players, and sometimes they don’t listen very well, but you just keep saying it — just like I tell my kids — and you have to repeat it over and over and over again, and hopefully maybe it sinks in.”
Thumbnail photo via Jeremy Brevard/USA TODAY Sports Images
