Will Tom Brady Play In Super Bowl 2018? Injury Update For Patriots

Tom Brady’s hand injury that caused some concern ahead of the AFC Championship Game won’t be an issue Sunday afternoon. The quarterback will play when the New England Patriots face the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 2018, and the ailment shouldn’t have an effect on his performance.

Brady suffered a laceration on his throwing hand in practice four days before the Patriots hosted the Jaguars with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line. Brady was forced to get 12 stitches, though the incident didn’t seem to alter his performance, whatsoever.

Leading a comeback victory against the Jaguars, Brady looked every bit like the NFL’s best quarterback. He threw for 290 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions and a 108.4 passer rating in the 24-20 victory.

When Brady takes the field at Minneapolis’ U.S. Bank Stadium Sunday, it’ll mark two weeks since New England’s last contest. During the Patriots’ extra week of rest, Brady had an appointment to have his stitches removed, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Throughout the week, Brady has been wearing a protective glove on his right hand when meeting with the media.

“My hand, it’s getting better,” Brady said Tuesday, via USA Today. “It’s not quite where I want to be. So I’m just trying to protect it the best way I can. It’s obviously a very important part of my body as a quarterback, so I just want it to be as healthy as possible for the game on Sunday.”

Since tearing his ACL in the first game of the 2008 NFL season, Brady has never missed a game due to injury. He’ll start in his third Super Bowl in four years Sunday, hoping to win a record-setting sixth championship.

Philadelphia knows all too well about injuries to their starting quarterback. Carson Wentz is probably the one player that could’ve prevented Brady from winning the 2017 NFL MVP award, which will be announced Saturday. Wentz suffered a torn ACL when the Eagles visited the Los Angeles Rams on Dec. 10, going down for the rest of the season.

Nick Foles has performed as well as Philadelphia could’ve hoped in the playoffs, posting a 122.1 passer rating.