Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady apologized Thursday for his "poor choice of words" when comparing his commitment to the NFL season to deployment in the military.
During Monday's episode of his Let's Go! podcast, Brady said:
"I almost look at a football season like going away on deployment in the military and it's like, man, here I go again," said Brady. "There's only one way to do it."
Brady started his Thursday media availability by apologizing for the comparison.
“Before we start can I say one thing? Earlier this week I made a statement about playing football and the military, and it was a very poor choice of words,” Brady said. “I apologize.”
When asked to explain what he meant by the comparison, Brady declined.
“To be honest I don’t really want to expand on it too much,” Brady said. “I have a tremendous amount of gratitude to everyone who served. In the end, we play a game, and the military is defending our country. It’s two different things and I shouldn’t have made the comparison.”
The seven-time Super Bowl champion retired briefly in the off-season before changing his mind and announcing he would be coming back for his 23rd NFL season.
Following a career year in 2021, Brady has gotten off to a slower start in 2022, completing 67.2 per cent of his passes for 1,652 yards, eight touchdowns, and one interception.
The Buccaneers will look to move past their surprising 20-18 defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Steelers when they travel to Carolina to take on the Panthers in Week 7.
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