Tom Brady has heard his share of criticism from coach Bill Belichick over the years, but the Patriots quarterback said his coach approaches it much differently than Brad Childress did Sunday night when he criticized Brett Favre in his postgame news conference for throwing three interceptions in a loss at Green Bay.
"I think every head coach has different styles to motivate their players," Brady said during his weekly appearance on the "Dennis & Callahan" show Tuesday morning on WEEI. "Coach Belichick, he doesn't ever do that to anybody. It doesn't matter if I threw seven interceptions, he would never do that. But there's no doubt that he's going to bring that up to me at some point, probably right away, in front of the team, as well. He's going to make the point that he needs to make in order to try to get his players to play better.
"Everyone does that in different ways. We're all big boys. We can handle the criticism. If we don't do something well, we know that we didn't do something well. Often times, players are their harshest critics. When I don't play well, I know it. Sometimes it does hurt your ego a bit when somebody tells you you've got to do it better. But that's the truth. If that's what you need as a player, then in the end you'll be pretty happy that someone actually came out and said it, because maybe that will motivate you a little bit more to get it improved."
Brady told WEEI that he would not be surprised to see Favre play Sunday, despite the fact the veteran has a stress fracture in his left ankle. "You can be as tough as you want," Brady said. "But sometimes, like Tony Romo last night in the game, you just can't make it out there. You get hit, you fall awkwardly, you break a bone that just won't allow you to play. Brett's played through some incredible injuries. … He's had broken bones before. If there's any chance of him playing, he's going to make it out there. He's one of the toughest payers to ever suit up in the NFL." Brady also had some comments on Childress' thoughts on the Patriots sign stealing during their 2006 game against the Vikings. Check out Mark Craig's blog.
