FOXBORO, Mass. — Finesse might as well be a four-letter word in Tom Brady's eyes.
The Patriots have been labeled a finesse team a number of times by players around the league, most recently by Raiders linebacker Rolando McClain, but Brady takes exception to that term.
Brady was asked if it's possible to be a physical team when they put the ball in the air as much as they do.
"Sure, you definitely can be," Brady said. "It comes down to those situational plays. Like third-and-1, you're not throwing it. First-and-goal on the 1, you're not throwing it. Four minutes left in the game, and you've got a lead, you're not throwing it. You might, but the team really knows you're running it. Like against the Jets, where we ran it nine of 11 or 10 of 11 times right at the end of the game to end it. That's what it means to be tough [and] physical. I would say that they Steelers threw it 50 times last week, and they're a pretty physical team. That's what we try to be as well. Even though you're efficient in both phases — running and passing — you're still trying to do it with an element of toughness to your team."
It's a dirty word, isn't it?
"Finesse in football?" Brady responded. "Yes, football isn't a finesse sport. You don't go very far as a finesse team."
