FOXBORO, Mass. — New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady got slightly combative with a reporter Friday when asked about the reported rift his trainer, Alex Guerrero, has with head coach Bill Belichick.
Brady was asked how he reacted when Belichick told him Guerrero could no longer fly with the team nor stand on the sideline.
“I don’t really agree with your question, so I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Brady said. “How do you know what he said?”
The Boston Globe’s Ben Volin started to respond “So, you’re saying the report that the access was –” before being cut off by the quarterback.
“I’m not saying anything,” Brady said. “How do you say that (Belichick) said anything? You don’t know anything about that.”
Volin asked Brady if Belichick told him Guerrero was being banned from the sideline and team planes.
“I have a lot of conversations with him,” Brady said. “Those are private between he and I. I don’t think anyone knows what we talk about — or I’ve never (told anyone) and he’s never talked about it.”
The news conference kicked off with Brady being asked if he’s missed Guerrero’s presence on the sideline.
“I don’t think about it,” Brady said. “I have enough different things to think about, so I’m going to try to win an important game and do what I always do.”
Brady also was asked if the rift has put a strain on his relationship with Belichick.
“No, I just try to do the right thing and try to win football games,” Brady said. “I let my play do the talking. I try to go out there and try to prepare hard every week and I put everything into it. That’s where my focus is, and it’s not much beyond that.”
Brady was asked one final question about the rift on whether Guerrero’s influence on other players could present a conflict of interest with the team’s training staff.
“I think you’d have to ask a lot of other people those things,” Brady said. “I think everyone knows my relationship with Alex, and like I said, I just try to do what works for me. Everyone needs to do what works for them. I don’t think it’s anything more complicated than that. I try to go out there, and the whole goal for me is to try to go out there and play and help the team win. I do the best I can to do that. That’s kind of what I’ve always done.”
