It's not quite the time to sound the alarms in New England, but it is time to keep a watchful eye on the Patriots' injury report leading up to Sunday's AFC title game against the Jaguars. Forty-year-old quarterback and soon-to-be MVP Tom Brady is on it.
The Patriots announced Wednesday that Brady would not be meeting with reporters in order to spend time with the team's -- not his own -- medical staff. At the time of the announcement, there didn't appear to be an cause for concern. As Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald pointed out on Twitter, "Brady has pushed off his Wednesday news conferences several times this season."
There probably wasn't anything to worry about, right?
Tom Brady is with our medical staff and will not be available to the media today.
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) January 17, 2018
An hour later, we found out why he was with the medical staff: Brady is dealing with an injury to his right hand -- the one he uses to throw -- and was limited at practice.
According to Howe, the injury has bothered him at times this season. But Ben Volin of the Boston Globe wrote that it's not entirely clear if this is a new injury or an old one acting up again. In short, nobody really knows for sure just how badly Brady is hurting. And don't expect the Patriots to come out and be forthcoming about it.
According to Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald, Brady jammed his hand and got good news after X-rays.
Tom Brady jammed his throwing hand at practice after accidentally being run into, according to a source. X-rays showed no structural damage.
— Karen Guregian (@kguregian) January 17, 2018
This isn't the first time Brady has dealt with an injury this season. An Achilles injury and a shoulder issue have also bothered him at points this season. But Brady has yet to miss a game. So, again, there's no reason to panic. He's probably just taking it easy on a Wednesday and will be fine by Sunday -- hopefully.
The team doesn't seem overly concerned about it.
Biggest takeaway from the Patriots locker room session:
— Dianna Russini (@diannaESPN) January 17, 2018
Nobody seems too concerned that Brady missed his media session because of a hand injury #Patriots
The Jaguars' chances to upset the Patriots likely hinge on their ability to get after and harass Brady. Considering the Jaguars finished the regular season ranked second in sacks, they have a chance to do exactly that. Brady is likely to be in for a long afternoon against one of the league's best defenses. So the idea that he's already dealing with an injury before the game is cause for some concern.
You can stream Sunday's AFC Championship Game on CBSSports.com.
