Tom Brady on concussions: ‘It’s just part of life’
Tom Brady has built an NFL career based on avoiding hits, and he’s built a public persona that’s equally elusive, a gotta-hear-both-sides shield that’s allowed him to rise above most of the tricky issues of the day. Sometimes that’s gotten him in trouble, as with his “I support all my friends” backing of Donald Trump. And sometimes it allows him to talk without saying much on one of the NFL’s more pressing issues: the threat of concussions.
Brady’s on a promotional tour for a mattress company, which is not exactly the right venue for in-depth conversation about a serious medical issue. His comments on concussions to ABC News ran along expected lines: “I think there’s been more awareness from the general media on what CTE is, how it affects you, the long term ramifications of it,” Brady said. “I think, as an athlete, you have to take all those things into consideration and try to be as proactive as you can. Gain information, then go through the proper protocols if you do get a concussion.”
Again, Brady is on a tour as a commercial spokesman, plus he’s fighting the NFL in court, so it’s perhaps not an ideal time for him to be standing on the rooftops, calling on the NFL to step up efforts to protect players and compensate those injured in the past. The keep-on-doin’-what-you’re-doin’ approach sounds good but won’t make any real waves.
That said, Brady came dangerously close to Roger Goodell’s infamous “there is risk sitting on a couch” line from February when he tried to put concussions into a broader context: “It’s just part of life, you know, not only football, but contact sports,” he said. “It’s part of people walking down the street. You run, you fall, you hit your head. There’s a lot of sports that are involved, but I think it’s good there’s more awareness than there’s been in the past. Women’s soccer and cycling, water polo, there’s a lot of sports.”
The difference, of course, is that collisions are generally a rare side-effect or accident in those other areas, whereas they’re a necessary cost of doing business in the NFL. “Awareness” isn’t the issue any longer; treatment and prevention are.
Brady wasn’t reported as saying anything on the ongoing deflate-gate legal thicket, which currently has him suspended for the first four games of the 2016. That’s most likely because it’s (unbelievably) still pending litigation, and publicists told reporters ahead of time that he couldn’t, or wouldn’t, speak on it. That, as well as Brady’s right-down-the-middle stance on concussions, is a shame. Brady, moreso than any player alive, has both the perspective and the influence to shape public opinion … if he chooses to step up in the pocket and do so.
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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports and the author of EARNHARDT NATION. Contact him at [email protected] or find him on Twitter or on Facebook.
