Despite the increase in coronavirus cases in Florida, Tom Brady is not backing down from training with his Tampa Bay Buccaneers teammates.
And during a Thursday workout, he even channeled one of the best-known presidents in the United States: Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
The 42-year-old quarterback posted a photo of himself in his Instagram story drinking water with the quote: “” The only thing we need to fear is fear itself. “-FDR” in an apparent response to critics who think that You shouldn’t be training during this stage of the pandemic. Roosevelt uttered that famous phrase in his first inaugural speech as the 32nd President of the United States on March 4, 1933 after defeating Herbert Hoover for the presidency and with the country in middle of the Great Depression.
Brady is likely pleased to learn that the NFL still plans to organize training camps on time starting in late July, although there are contingency plans.
In response to NFL players doing private training, NFL medical director Dr. Allen Sills endorsed a recent statement by Thom Mayer, the union’s medical officer, discouraging training. Brady is not the only NFL quarterback who is training. The Giants ‘Daniel Jones and the Jets’ Sam Darnold held trainings in Texas and Florida respectively, but have not been as public about the practice as the Hall of Fame quarterback has been.
“This is, again, a place where the NFLPA and the NFL are in the exact same place, which is what we want to be the safest possible environment for all of our constituents,” said Sills. “Once again, it’s about reducing risk and trying to mitigate it. We know that we cannot eliminate the risk. And therefore we will work a lot hand in hand with the players association because, again, this is where everyone in that team environment will share the same risk. But they will also share the same responsibility among themselves. “
This is not the first time that Brady has ignored orders related to the coronavirus.
In April, Brady was kicked out of a park in Tampa, where the local government had closed the area due to the virus. The six-time Super Bowl champion also ignored orders to stay home in Florida, when Brady tried to visit Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich later that month, but mistakenly entered a neighbor’s home.
Sills also emphasized that what the general public should be doing during the pandemic is exactly what the league and its players should be doing.
“We are continuing a very active discussion with the gamer association about protocols dealing with testing and screening and treatment, response and travel,” he said Thursday. “And therefore we update ownership on where we encounter those issues and our approach to them.
The league and the Professional Soccer Hall of Fame canceled the inaugural preseason game between the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers scheduled for August 6. Salon initiation ceremonies were set for August 8, and again in mid-September for a special centennial class, they moved to August 2021, when the Cowboys and Steelers will play the game.
– with AP
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