Tom Brady was excused from training camp Thursday, the first day of what Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles said was a planned 11-day absence from the team to address “personal matters.”
Bowles said the 45-year-old quarterback’s rest was arranged before camp began, adding that Brady won’t return until after the Bucs’ preseason game at Tennessee on Aug. 20.
“Tom was excused today … He’s going to deal with some personal stuff. That’s something we talked about before training camp started. We allocated that time because he wanted to come in and get some chemistry with the guys with two weeks of training camp, knowing he wasn’t going to play the first two (preseason) games,” Bowles said after the Bucs wrapped up two days of scrimmage against the Miami Dolphins.
Tampa Bay opens the preseason Saturday night against the Dolphins. The Bucs will also travel to Nashville for two days of practice before their game against the Titans.
Backup quarterbacks Blaine Gabbert, Kyle Trask and Ryan Griffin will share snaps during Brady’s absence.
“I didn’t want to take reps out of Blaine, Kyle and Griff, as far as these next two games. That’s something he can handle,” Bowles said. “We trust him. We talked about it. It was scheduled well before training camp.”
Brady, who retired in February only to change his mind six weeks later, also excused himself from practice for personal reasons last Friday, two days after taking a day off scheduled for his 45th birthday.
Bowles said his confidence level is “pretty high” that Brady will be in the lineup for next month’s regular-season opener in Dallas.
“Based on our conversation, I’m not worried,” Bowles said.
