Are the Buccaneers in hot water over Tom Brady’s injury reveal?

When Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady spoke to the media in early June, he revealed something not previously known. He played the 2020 season, and led the Bucs to a Super Bowl win, with an injured knee.

We all knew he had a knee procedure done in the offseason after winning Super Bowl LV, we just didn’t know what it was for and the predominant assumption was it was for a routine cleanup.

Turns out, Brady had a torn MCL all year, proving GOATs don’t need even two legs to stand tall.

However, this has brought up other questions as well. Questions pertaining to whether or not the Buccaneers violated a league rule by not disclosing the injury on their weekly reports.

According to the NFL rulebook,

“All players who have reportable injuries must be listed on the practice report, even if the player takes all the reps in practice, and even if the team is certain that he will play in the upcoming game. This is especially true of key players.”

I think Brady would be considered a key player.

Of course, first thing is to find out whether or not the Bucs even knew about the injury, or if they thought their aging quarterback was just suffering from normal aches and pains associated with playing the game well into his forties.

Apparently, Brady didn’t offer himself for a postseason physical after the 2019 season, his last with the New England Patriots.

So it’s entirely possible the player kept this news from the Patriots, the Buccaneers, and everyone – except probably Gisele who isn’t bound by NFL rules – until recent media musings.

If so, then you’d think the Bucs could avoid punishment. But what if they don’t?

John Breech of CBS dove into the history of similar infractions, citing the New York Jets‘ hiding of an injury suffered by quarterback Brett Favre.

The Pittsburgh Steelers had a more recent case when Ben Roethlisberger sat out of practice ahead of a game with an elbow injury. The team listed it as a veteran day off instead and after Roethlisberger fully injured the elbow in the following game, backup Mason Rudolph spilled the beans about the starter’s injury.

In both cases, teams were fined, but no suspensions or draft capital confensation occured.

So even if the Bucs get punished, it shouldn’t be too big a deal. Should it be an issue at all though?

James Yarcho and I discussed this, along with ESPN’s recent offensive line rankings, and the potential ramifications of special teams player Jaydon Mickens’ pending weapons charges. All on Monday’s episode of the Locked On Bucs Podcast.

Originally found on Read More