Patriots fans were sent into a state of panic Wednesday over Tom Brady’s right hand.

Brady was supposed to appear at an afternoon press conference, but he unexpectedly skipped the event to meet with the Patriots medical staff. The team later listed Brady as limited on the injury report due to his right hand, which, importantly, is his throwing hand.

Patriots QB Tom Brady was limited in today's practice because of a right hand issue. Something to monitor. — Field Yates (@FieldYates) January 17, 2018

It's a right hand injury for Brady. Unclear if he injured it in practice today or if it's something he has dealt with this year — Ben Volin (@BenVolin) January 17, 2018

Brady had been listed on injury reports earlier this season with Achilles tendon and left shoulder injuries, but never a hand injury. According to The Boston Globe‘s Jim McBride, the Patriots quarterback “didn’t seem hampered in any way” during the part of Wednesday’s practice that media were allowed to watch.


Boston Sports Journal’s Christopher Price noted that Brady “has been seen flexing” the hand on and off since the midway point of Wednesday’s practice.

Some reporters speculated it was a lingering injury that recently became aggravated. The Providence Journal‘s Mark Daniels wrote that Brady had “been seen shaking that hand midgame multiple times this season.” The Boston Herald‘s Jeff Howe tweeted it had “bothered him at times throughout the season.”

The Herald‘s Karen Guregian provided the first substantiated explanation:

Tom Brady jammed his throwing hand at practice after accidentally being run into, according to a source. X-rays showed no structural damage. — Karen Guregian (@kguregian) January 17, 2018

Guregian’s peers matched her report and provided a bit more context about what the injury may mean as Brady and the Patriots prepare for the AFC championship Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

And barring an unexpected setback, Tom Brady will play Sunday against the Jaguars, per source. https://t.co/HNde1BtTA5 — Jeff Howe (@jeffphowe) January 17, 2018

Brady did injure his hand today while running into a teammate in practice, as @kguregian said. Source says Brady is not certain to practice tomorrow. Never a dull moment in Foxborough — Ben Volin (@BenVolin) January 18, 2018

In an updated article late Wednesday night, an unnamed source told Volin and McBride that the injury occurred during a handoff play and that Brady also sustained a cut on the hand. The injury is bad enough that Brady might not practice Thursday, another source said.

However, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the issue “sounds manageable.”

Daniels, the Providence Journal reporter, wrote Wednesday that it wasn’t the first time Brady postponed a press conference this season:

All season long, the quarterback has talked on either Thursday or Friday when he’s either missed a Wednesday practice or taken a maintenance day. Typically, Brady talks every Wednesday, but this season it has been different due to him dealing with his Achilles and left shoulder injury.

For his part, Brady is expected to shed more light on the issue Thursday: The portion of Patriots practice open to the media Thursday is scheduled for around 12:15 p.m., and Brady is scheduled to speak to reporters between 3:30 p.m. and 4:15 p.m. But according to one of Brady’s teammates, Patriots fans don’t need to wait to exhale.

Should we be worried about Tom Brady's hand? Chris Hogan: “I don’t think so.” — Mark Daniels (@MarkDanielsPJ) January 17, 2018