FOXBOROUGH - As always, it's impossible for Coach Bill to give someone a simple yes/no/I'm not really sure yet answer to a simple question such as, "Will Tom Brady start against the Chiefs next Sunday?"
Nope, it has to be Belispeak.
"We prepare all the players during the week," said Bill Belichick. "We'll give you the injury report on Friday."
Of course, he will. And for the zillionth week in succession, Tom Brady's name will be on it. That's another bit of Coach Bill self-amusement.
Out there in the Heartland, coach Herman Edwards and his staff will see Brady's name on the list and they no doubt will chuckle. You think they'll spend one millisecond this week assuming anyone other than Tom Brady will be calling signals for the Patriots when they arrive at Gillette Stadium for the 2008 season opener?
We know this much: If he's not playing, Brady will be gobsmacked. According to him, he could have played last week. And the week before that. And the week before that. And the week before that.
"If it's up to me," he said yesterday, "I'm going to play. I'm always hoping I'm going to be out there. I'll be preparing the same way."
Whatever exactly has been the problem with Brady's foot, he insists he's getting better and will be quite prepared for the Chiefs. "It's been getting progressively better over the last few weeks," he said.
He also cautioned against reading anything into his physical absence from the Giants game. "Nobody likes to stand around, me especially," he explained. "The coach made a decision. 'Head home. Relax. See you tomorrow.' I take my cue from the coach."
But Brady wants it understood that his input into the matter was irrelevant. "I would have loved to play," he said. "I wanted to play. The decision was made for me not to play. All I can do is focus on getting better and stay prepared."
For the first time in his professional career, his preseason preparation did not include participation in any exhibition games. The Chiefs come to town Sunday and Brady, the NFL's reigning Most Valuable Player, will hit the ground running, apparently with a minimum of trepidation.
"I've practiced a lot this preseason," he pointed out. "Randy [Moss] didn't play the entire preseason last year, and it didn't affect what he did. I'm hoping it won't affect me a whole lot."
Brady wasn't trying to con anybody. It would be beyond disingenuous for him to suggest that practice is the same as actual NFL competition, even exhibition competition. "There's nothing like playing," he declared. "You can't replicate the speed, or how it affects your decision-making, or your level of energy."
But.
Yes, there's a "but," and it's a big one.
"But the fortunate thing for me," he reminded, "is that I've played about 130 of these games. I know that speed. My body knows that speed."
