One of the biggest mysteries of the NFL offseason revolves around the fact of whether Tom Brady suffered a concussion during the 2016 season.
During an interview with CBS This Morning in May, Brady's wife, Gisele Bundchen, not only claimed that Brady suffered a concussion last season, but that he has suffered multiple concussions during his career.
Although Brady's agent responded to the claim, we never actually got to hear from Brady himself because he successfully managed to duck the media during the Patriots' OTA sessions this offseason.
The team had a total of five practices that were open to reporters and after each of those sessions, Brady declined all interview requests.
Of course, that media silence couldn't last forever.
The Patriots quarterback finally broke his media silence for an interview with ESPN's E:60 that aired Sunday morning. The interview, which took place during Brady's tour of Asia in June, featured several questions about his trip before E:60's Kevin Negandhi was able to sneak a question in about the concussion situation.
Here's how Negandhi phrased the question, along with Brady's answer.
Negandhi: "[Gisele] sees the hits, she was vocal about that, most recently on CBS about the concussions, how much do you talk to her about those hits that you take?"
Brady: "She's there every day. I mean, we go to bed in the same bed every night, so I think she knows when I'm sore, she knows when I'm tired, she knows when I get hit. We drive home together [from games]. But, she also knows how well I take care of myself. She's a very concerned wife and very loving."
Brady has had two months to think about how to answer this question, and he looks like he spent that time coming up with an answer that was as perfectly ambiguous as possible.
First, he doesn't dispute anything that Gisele said.
Gisele says he has suffered a few concussions, Brady basically says she knows more about him than anyone without actually saying whether he suffered a concussion.
Second, although he didn't dispute Gisele's claim, he didn't confirm it, either. Basically, that should be enough to keep him and the Patriots out of hot water. At the time, the problem with Gisele's claim was that if it was true and Brady did suffer a concussion, he either didn't tell the Patriots or he did tell them and the team hid it from the NFL. Either would be bad.
The NFL investigated the issue in May and found "no record" that Brady suffered a concussion in 2016, which means both Brady and the team are likely in the clear.
That being said, don't be surprised if the issue comes up again at training camp when reporters who regularly cover the team will get their shot to ask Brady about the possibility that he suffered a concussion. Of course, at that point, Brady can say "Guys, I've already answered that question," or "That's in the past, that was three months ago. I'm moving on to the 2017 season."
We already know Bill Belichick won't be answering any questions about Brady's possible concussion, and if Brady stops talking about it, then the issue might just die now that the NFL has investigated it.
Brady also was asked another question about Gisele during his E:60 interview. After the Patriots beat the Falcons 34-28 in the Super Bowl, Gisele asked Tom if he'd think about retiring. Well, it appears that she's now come to grips with the fact that he might play forever.
"She'll support me as long as I continue to want to play," Brady said of his wife. "She's like my mom, the two of them together sitting next to each other in the suite watching me get hit all day, I'm sure it's not fun, but they know how well I take care of myself, too."
So how long will Gisele have to wait before her husband retires?
Brady has been saying for months that he wants to play until he's 45 and he reiterated that point in his interview with ESPN.
"My mid-40s, I've always said, so naturally that's 45, but football is a contact sport," Brady said, noting there's always a "disclaimer."
"I don't think you can take anything for granted in football, things happen," Brady said. "It's just part of the sport. I would love to be able to continue playing at that level. As long as I keep playing well and committed to it, I'll keep doing it. I know I got a lot left in me."
Brady turns 40 on Aug. 3.
Brady was also asked about how he felt about the fact that the Patriots' Super Bowl ring has 283 diamonds, and let's just say it sounds like he's a big fan.
"I thought that was really a cool concept," Brady said. "That game's in everyone's mind forever."
You hear that Falcons fans?
FOR-EV-ER.
