With Tom Brady missing some practice time recently and playing poorly over the past two games, there has been some concern that the New England Patriots quarterback is dealing with an injury. If he is, it’s fair to wonder who Brady is leaning on most to get back to full strength — the team’s staff, or his personal trainer and best buddy.
Brady has consistently credited Alex Guerrero, his personal trainer and the man in charge of Brady’s TB12 institute in Foxboro, with helping him play at a high level for as long as he has. However, there have been rumblings this year that Patriots coach Bill Belichick is not the biggest supporter of Guerrero and his methods. In an appearance on WEEI’s “Kirk & Callahan Show” Friday, Adam Schefter seemingly confirmed that is the case.
“I’ve heard whispers about that sort of thing, as well. There’s some sort of issue,” Schefter said. “I truly do not know the extent of it. I don’t know how long it has been brewing or the history of it. Clearly, there’s something there, but I don’t know what to make of it, to be honest with you.
“I don’t know how (how big of an issue), but again, it’s not the first time I have heard it this season. But I don’t have extensive knowledge of it to say, ‘Boy, this is a big deal, or this is not a big deal.'”
A lengthy article that was published in Boston Magazine two years ago labeled Guerrero a “glorified snake-oil salesman.” The piece went into detail about how the Federal Trade Commission discovered Guerrero was pretending to be a medical doctor and claiming he had products that could cure cancer and concussions. Brady has acknowledged that Guerrero made mistakes in his past, but the bond between the two is seen as unbreakable.
Fast-forward to this past November, when ESPN the Magazine wrote that “a collision is coming” between Belichick and Guerrero. Belichick later said there was a lot of “fake news” in the article, but he was quick to stress that Guerrero is only affiliated with Brady and not the team in any way.
“Alex works with Tom and Tom’s facility. And that’s really about the end of it,” Belichick said. “If a player goes up there for a second opinion or a treatment or whatever, then that’s fine. No different than one who went to his own chiropractor or massage therapist, or whatever it happens to be.”
“He’s not on our staff. Our staff, our training staff, our nutrition staff, our equipment staff, you know, those are all contained within the Patriots. Alex and his staff at TB12 and Tom’s role in TB12, that’s kind of a separate business.”
At the very least, it is obvious Belichick doesn’t think as highly of Guerrero as Brady does. But whether the coach likes it or not, Guerrero has a huge influence over the team in that he is Brady’s most trusted confidant and has even been working with some other star Patriots players. That’s probably enough for Belichick to know he has to coexist with Guerrero, but it’s fair to wonder how long that will last.
