Brady mum on concussion claim
Tom Brady said he prefers to keep any medical issues in his past private, including whether he had a concussion last season.
In his first comments since the Patriots opened training camp, the quarterback said Friday he is “not blind” to issues such as CTE but remains confident in how he tries to avoid injury.
Brady’s wife, supermodel Gisele Bundchen, told “CBS This Morning” in May that Brady played through a concussion on his way to a fifth Super Bowl title. She also alluded to other concussions he has had during his career.
He declined to say whether her comments were accurate, adding, “I don’t want to get into things that happened in my past, certain medical history and so forth.”
The National Football League said it reviewed all reports from independent neurotrauma consultants and trainers who worked at Brady’s games during the 2016 season and found no records that indicated he had a head injury or showed concussion symptoms.
Brady, who turned 40 on Thursday, hasn’t missed a regular-season game because of injury since tearing a ligament in his left knee in the season opener in 2008.
“I really don’t think that’s anybody’s business, what happened last year and I’m focused on this year and improving and working on things I need to get better at,” he said.
Brady sat out the first four games of the 2016 season as punishment for his role in the “Deflategate” scandal. He missed practice late in the season for leg, thigh and ankle injuries.
But he wasn’t listed on the leaguerequired injury reports for a concussion or head injury at any point during the 2016 season.
Tannehill may have surgery: Miami Dolphins coach Adam Gase said knee surgery is an option for quarterback Ryan Tannehill, a decision that would likely sideline him for the entire season.
Gase says it’s also possible Tannehill can again avoid surgery, as he did when he first hurt his left knee last December. That injury forced him to miss the final four games of the season. He hurt the knee again while scrambling at practice Thursday.
An MRI was inconclusive, and Gase says the Dolphins will seek second and third opinions. He says there’s no timetable for a decision.
Gase said he hasn’t decided whether to bring in another quarterback. Matt Moore went 2-2 as a starter replacing Tannehill last year and becomes the No. 1 quarterback for now.
Newton held out of passing drills: Cam Newton wasn’t able to throw, but that didn’t stop the charismatic Carolina Panthers quarterback from hamming it up with fans.
In what has become a tradition at the team’s annual Fan Fest practice at Bank of America Stadium, Newton did his best to entertain the crowd. If he wasn’t dancing in pre-game warmups to “Bad and Boujee,” the seventh-year quarterback was playing the role of “crowd conductor,” using his arms to direct the 58, 568 fans to stand, yell and do the wave. At one point Newton got two waves started at once, heading in different directions around the stadium.
“He is a dynamic personality,” Panthers coach Ron Rivera said. “And we have a great fan base here that really supports this football team. I think it’s kind of neat. He’s engaged and that’s a big part of it with our fan base.”
Newton didn’t participate in passing drills for the fourth straight day because of soreness in his surgically repaired right throwing shoulder and Rivera offered no guesses on when he expects the former league MVP to start throwing again.
Newton had surgery in March to repair a partially torn rotator cuff but started throwing at the beginning of training camp.
However, he developed some soreness late in practice Sunday. The team had a day off Monday, but Newton hasn’t thrown since.
Steelers reward Tomlin: Mike Tomlin’s strong first decade with the Pittsburgh Steelers has earned the coach the chance to work well into a second decade with the organization.
Tomlin and the team have agreed to an extension that will keep the 45-yearold in Pittsburgh through the 2020 season.
Tomlin is 103-57 in 10 years with the Steelers, who have captured one Super Bowl, been to another and earned five AFC North titles during his tenure. He is one of eight coaches to win 100 games in their first 10 seasons.
Steelers President Art Rooney said Tomlin “continues to prove he is one of the top head coaches in the National Football League.” Pittsburgh went 11-5 in 2016 before falling to New England in the AFC championship game.