Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady succinctly addressed the decision to hold a workout with multiple teammates on Tuesday morning at Berkeley Prep in the Tampa area despite rising COVID-19 risks in the area — and the six-time Super Bowl champ didn't apologize.
“No Excuses” Brady wrote on his Instagram story over an image of him and Buccaneers tight end Rob Gronkowski during the workout (via Greg Auman of The Athletic):
NFLPA advised players to stop group workouts in light of recent spikes in positive COVID-19 testing. Tom Brady still had a group of Bucs players working out today. His Instagram: “No excuses.” pic.twitter.com/RUOr6LKhyq
— Greg Auman (@gregauman) June 23, 2020
Brady has plenty of catching up to do with the Buccaneers, as he seeks to learn a new system and build chemistry his squad after an off-season mainly conducted over Zoom to this point. Still, Brady's prioritization of football over health should raise eyebrows.
The Tampa and greater South Florida area has become a hotbed of coronavirus cases in recent weeks, and the state tallied a record-high of new COVID-19 cases on Friday (4,049), including two Buccaneers players and an assistant coach.
The NFL has seen a rash of players and staff test positive in recent days, including members of the Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans and San Francisco 49ers, causing NFLPA medical director Dr. Thom Mayer to issue a memo advising players to cease private group workouts as the league tries to get a handle on another wave of the virus. Said Dr. Mayer:
“It is our consensus medical opinion that in light of the increase in Covid-19 cases in certain states that no players should be engaged in practicing together in private workouts. We are working on the best mitigation procedures at team facilities for both training camps and the upcoming season, and believe that it is in the best interest of all players that we advise against any voluntary joint practices before training camp commences.”
Brady, evidently, will continue to hold private group workouts with his Buccaneers teammates. Brady also used his Tuesday Instagram story to promote an unproven immune supplement that he has repeatedly touted during the pandemic, despite the fact that the product has not been approved by the FDA nor deemed medically supportive for combating COVID-19 in any way.
Neither the NFLPA nor NFL have commented on Brady's defiance of the league's recommendations.
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