FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Patriots Nation exhaled Thursday when Tom Brady returned to practice and said he “feels great” heading into the AFC Championship Game this weekend.
Brady didn’t say much about the illness that not only kept him out of practice entirely on Wednesday (a rarity for the New England star), but also forced him to leave the team’s practice facility and go home to recuperate.
“It was nothing,” Brady said as the Patriots prepared to face the Broncos in Denver on Sunday for the right to play in Super Bowl XLVIII. “I feel great. It was nothing at all.”
How Brady looked during Thursday’s practice is another story. Teammates apparently were under orders from coach Bill Belichick not to reveal anything about the quarterback’s performance.
Asked to describe Brady’s play, rookie wide receiver Kenbrell Thompkins said: “You’ll have to ask Coach [Belichick] about that.”
Aside from the 2008 season, when he sat out the final 15 games because of a torn knee ligament, Brady has not missed a start — regular season or playoffs — since becoming the Patriots’ full-time starter in 2002.