The 45-year-old quarterback missed practice Thursday, and Bowles told reporters he won’t return until after the team’s second preseason game on Aug. 20.
“Tom was excused today,” Bowles said. “He’ll be back sometime after Tennessee. He’ll deal with some personal stuff.
“That’s something we talked about before training camp started. We set aside that time because I wanted to come in and get some chemistry with the guys and get through two weeks of training camp.
“Knowing I wasn’t going to play the first two games, I didn’t want to take reps out of Blaine (Gabbert) and Kyle (Trask) as well as (Ryan Griffin) going into the next two games.”
Bowles did not elaborate on the reason for Brady’s absence, but said it was a plan that had been in place since before the start of training camp and remained confident that Brady would return for the team’s season-opening Week 1 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys.
“Obviously, there’s always going to be doubters,” Bowles said, “but I have a pretty high confidence level, yeah.”
Bucs linebacker Devin White said Brady had the full support and understanding of his team.
“He’s a big man, (bigger) than most of us in the locker room, and he’s human at the end of the day,” White said. “He’s got personal issues, but he’s a guy who’s been around so long that he (doesn’t) need to be here.
“If he’s not here, we know he’s still working. He’s got a great supporting cast around him and he’s going to do his job whether he’s here or not, so when he comes back, he’s never going to miss a beat and that’s the only important
“But more than football, we’re praying for whatever he has as a human being and we hope everyone else is too and that’s all we’re asking for him – his well-being. Football comes second , he’s human. first.”
Since joining the Bucs in 2020 from the New England Patriots, Brady has helped dramatically improve the team’s success.
A perennial underachiever before his arrival, the Bucs won the Super Bowl in Brady’s first season at the helm; his seventh Super Bowl ring.
The team fell short of expectations last season, losing to eventual Super Bowl winners the Los Angeles Rams in the playoffs.
Despite being the oldest quarterback in the league, the predictions for the Bucs are high again this season: Super Bowl or bust.