Patriots deny report; support QB Brady

Oct 24, 2008 - 12:07 AM FOXBOROUGH, Massachusetts (Ticker) -- The New England Patriots on Thursday set the record straight regarding their stance Tom Brady's choice of doctors.

The Patriots were reportedly upset with their star quarterback for using his personal doctor to repair his torn ACL and MCL, a surgery that has led to quite a conundrum for the reigning NFL Most Valuable Player. Brady has had three additional surgeries since October 6 to clear out an infection that may cause doctors to replace his ACL.

ESPN reported Thursday that the Patriots wanted Brady to use the team's doctor, while the former Super Bowl MVP chose to have the surgery done in California by a doctor his family preferred. Later in the day, the Patriots issued a statement denying the report.

"Today, ESPN cited an unnamed source who supposedly expressed the feelings of the Patriots 'organization'. This unsubstantiated report does not represent the team's views whatsoever," the statement read.

"We have supported Tom Brady 100 percent from day one of this process and will continue to do so. We issued a statement last Saturday expressing our complete organizational support for Tom. That support includes all aspects of the process. Unfortunately, our statement was not mentioned or referenced in ESPN's report. Today, we reiterate our total support for Tom as he recovers from his injury."

Brady's injury is a major issue for the Patriots, who may not have the three-time Super Bowl champion's services for quite some time.

The Boston Herald reported that the infection has become troublesome, and may cause doctors to remove the patellar tendon graft used to replace Brady's ACL, which would reset his rehab. The timetable for full recovering from a torn ACL is approximately one year.

If Brady has to have surgery to replace the ACL, it could put his playing status for 2009 in jeopardy.

On Thursday, Brady wrote on his web site, tombrady.com, that "The infection is very treatable and, through a course of antibiotics, it will be knocked out of my system."

Brady referred to the second procedure as being "proactive," on the part of the doctors, and that the results have been positive. Brady is on a course of IV antibiotics, which he will continue for a six-week period, according to the Herald.

Brady, who threw for a single-season record 50 touchdowns in 2007, suffered the injury in the season opener against the Kansas City Chiefs on September 7.