Tom Brady's trainer Alex Guerrero: Bill Belichick 'never evolved' with Patriots as QB aged
On Wednesday, Tom Brady's father spoke about his son's decision to leave the New England Patriots, claiming his family feels vindicated. On Thursday, personal trainer Alex Guerrero, one of Brady's closest friends and confidants, said that Patriots coach Bill Belichick didn't evolve in how he treated Brady before the quarterback's exit after 20 seasons in Foxborough.
"The interesting thing I think there — and this is just me, an outsider looking in — it was like Bill never really … I think his emotions or feelings never evolved with age," Guerrero said in an interview with the Boston Herald. "I think in time, with Tom, as Tom got into his late 30s or early 40s, I think Bill was still trying to treat him like that 20-year-old kid that he drafted. And all the players, I think, realized Tom was different.
"He’s older, so he should be treated differently. And all the players, none of them would have cared that he was treated differently. I think that was such a Bill thing. He never evolved. So you can’t treat someone who’s in his 40s like they’re 20. It doesn’t work."
Guerrero did attempt to walk back Tom Brady Sr.'s comments about vindication and doubted whether Brady, who will face his former team next week when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers visit the Patriots, felt that way.
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"Look, I’m a father," Guerrero said. "I’ve got children. And I love and admire my kids. I think those were the emotions that were spoken by a loving father. I don’t know if they were really Tom’s emotions. When you’re in your mid-40s, how often are you calling your dad to talk about your work?"
Brady became a free agent after the 2019 season and eventually signed with the Buccaneers, whom he helped lead to a victory in Super Bowl 55. He won his NFL-record fifth Super Bowl MVP award.
The Buccaneers have started the season well, winning both their games. And Brady, at 44 years old, is on historic pace and leads the NFL with nine passing touchdowns.
Guerrero and Brady teamed up when Brady was playing in New England to open up a training location near Gillette Stadium. There, Guerrero had treated a number of Patriots players, though that eventually changed when Belichick revoked some of Guerrero's privileges, which became a point of contention.
In Tampa, Guerrero has no such restrictions and the Buccaneers organization has allowed Guerrero to treat its players.
"This place, we have so much fun here. We have a great time," Guerrero said. "They’re great here. Ownership is great. The coaching is great, the management is great."
Though the Buccaneers have a big matchup Sunday against the 2-0 Los Angeles Rams, many have already started to look ahead to their Week 4 game in New England in what will be Brady's first time playing at Gillette Stadium since he left.
"He and I have spent a lot of time together, and we really haven’t spent that much time talking about Week 4," Guerrero said. "We’ve really spent a lot of time just talking about the week that we’re in, and trying to stay focused on that.
"But … I know how I would feel coming back, and I would think he would feel the same. There’s a lot of years spent there. There’s a great excitement to see there, be there, feel the energy, see the fans, feel the fans. I think it’s going to be very exciting."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tom Brady's trainer Alex Guerrero: Bill Belichick 'never evolved'
