Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady made some questionable comments earlier this week, comparing an NFL season to military deployment.
To no surprise, the comments were poorly received by many. So, when Brady stepped to the podium Thursday for his weekly press conference before Tampa Bay's Week 7 game, he addressed the backlash and apologized for what he said.
"Before we start, can I say one thing?" Brady opened, as shared by the team. "Earlier this week I made a statement about playing football and the military, and it was a very poor choice of words. I just want to express that to, any sentiments out there that people may have taken it in a certain way. So I apologize."
Brady was then given a chance to further clarify.
"To be honest, I don't want to expand on it too much because I don't feel like, I just have a tremendous amount of gratitude for everyone who served," Brady said. "And in the end, we play a game and the military is defending our country. It's two very different things and I shouldn't have made the comparison."
Brady's apology comes in response to what he said Monday on his SiriusXM podcast "Let's Go!" with co-host Jim Gray: "I almost look at like a football season like you're going away on deployment in the military, and it's like, 'Man, here I go again!'"
It served as the recent non-football storyline Brady has been included in during recent weeks. The 45-year-old quarterback also has been in the news for the reported marital problems between Brady and his supermodel wife Gisele Bündchen, the two reportedly nearing a divorce.
With everything going on, though, Brady will have to try and maintain his focus on the football side. The Buccaneers will travel to the Carolina Panthers in Week 7 after a terrible loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
