Tom Brady will return to Patriots practice next week after they play their fourth game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. They've gone 3-0 without him so far, with both Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett excelling at the position.

The biggest toll of Brady's suspension is perhaps not the missed games, but the missed practice time. Here are Brady's comments from a recent interview, transcribed by ESPN's Mike Reiss:

“I don't think there is any benefit to watching the team play these games from a football standpoint, because it takes time to get the timing and the practice reps,” Brady said during his weekly interview on Westwood One Radio.

…

“I'm trying to do the best I can to stay in shape and to keep the timing, and to really stay football ready… It's a big week for me, and it's a big week for our team. Every week is a big week in the NFL, but not having been out there for four weeks, there is a lot of makeup time I'm going to need and the chance to be on the field with my teammates to see what kind of rhythm I can find in a short week of practice.”

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Brady will be the starting quarterback for New England in Week 5 against the Cleveland Browns, so even if he's not up to full speed, he should be just fine.

The concern isn't with just that game, of course. Here's Brady's response when Westwood One host Jim Gray asked Tom if he can possibly make up the time he's been away from the game and the Patriots' organization during his suspension:

“I don't think you can,” he answered. “I do admire some guys, like [Patriots receiver] Danny Amendola. He didn't practice at all in training camp and he goes out there and the first week of the year [and] has a great game. The second week of the year, he has two touchdown catches. I've played with a lot of teammates who have been off for extended periods of time and it looks like they're flipping the switch, but I think for me, that's not the way I really prepare. I like to take every rep in practice. I like to practice every day.

“I've been able to be very healthy over the course of my career, and I think that has really helped me, and I'm going to need to find that rhythm back. It's going to take some work and some time. Like I said before, that's some uncharted territory, too.”