Tom Brady's Cast Won't Affect His Play

Much has been made of the recent video footage of Tom Brady in a walking cast in New York. He was seen in it while going to visit his girlfriend, Gisele Bundchen. In spite of all the hype, Tom Brady's cast is going to have little if any effect on the Super Bowl. Fans are making far too much of it.

Let's analyze the facts: First of all, Brady was seen walking with the cast on. That's right - walking. That fact means that the injury, whatever it may be, is relatively minor. If this were three days before the Super Bowl, a minor injury might be a substantial problem. However, the Super Bowl is almost two weeks away. Brady has time to heal from whatever small injury he has before the game.

Second, Brady has some of the best protection in the NFL on the offensive line. The Giants have a pretty good defensive line, but in week 17, they put little pressure on Tom Brady. In other words, Brady will not have much scrambling to do, meaning he won't be putting too much unnecessary pressure on that foot.

Third, Brady is a gamer, plain and simple. Few players have the dedication that Brady brings to the table. As numerous outlets reported, before the "meaningless" week 17 game against the Giants, Bill Belichick asked Brady if he'd had a chance to see any Giants video footage. Brady said he'd watched all 15 games. Now he's got a little injury - one that isn't stopping him from walking - and people expect his performance to decline? Brady's too dedicated for that.

ESPN.com quotes Brady as saying: "Ah, you know, there's always bumps and bruises. I'll be ready for the Super Bowl. I'm not worried about that. I'm not missing this one. I'd have to be on a stretcher to miss this one. There will be treatment this week. In games like this, you get a little nicked up. It's nothing serious." So maybe he got bumped up against San Diego. If you think that's going to stop the best and most dedicated QB in football, prepare to be surprised in two weeks.