Throwing hand

Brady doesn’t believe he deserves undue praise for overcoming his ailment. Nonetheless, there can be no denying his toughness. Not when he’s 40 and still spearheading the Patriots’ cause. Up next is a date with the Eagles in the role of favorite. A sixth

In the aftermath of the 54th come-from-behind victory of his career, Tom Brady admitted what he refused to even acknowledge publicly during the week: The injury to his throwing hand affected — even scared — him. “I’ve never had anything like it,” he of 18 seasons’ worth of bruising battles said after the Patriots booked a ticket to Super Bowl LII. I’ve had a couple of crazy injuries, but this was pretty crazy. I didn’t know how I was going to do.”

Indeed, Brady understood the irony. He was about to compete in the American Football Conference title match, a testament to his longevity and continued competitiveness. At the same time, he was suffering from a gash to his dominant hand that required 12 stitches to close, the type of freak contact persistent flirtations with danger at an advanced age courted.

When the battlesmoke cleared, however, all the fretting proved to be for nothing. Brady netted 290 yards and two touchdowns on an efficient 26of-38 clip, leading the Patriots to victory after being behind 10 points in the fourth quarter. And considering how he cut up the vaunted Jaguars defense with trademark precision in the crunch, the black bandage covering his wound looked to be the only manifestation something was even wrong with him.

Brady doesn’t believe he deserves undue praise for overcoming his ailment. “I think it sounds kind of arrogant to say, ‘Oh, yeah, it bothered me” when you have a pretty good game.” Added head coach Bill Belichick, “it’s not open-heart surgery.” Nonetheless, there can be no denying his toughness. Not when he’s 40 and still spearheading the Patriots’ cause. Up next is a date with the Eagles in the role of favorite. A sixth Super Bowl title awaits, and his hand is exactly what it should be: a footnote.