Tom Brady's personal trainer breaks silence after ESPN's explosive Patriots story
The ongoing conflict between the New England Patriots and Tom Brady’s personal trainer, Alex Guerrero, has come to a head in recent weeks, with Guerrero finding himself banned from the Patriots’ facilities for that age-old NFL sin of causing a distraction.
Seth Wickersham of ESPN forced the issue when his article suggesting that the Guerrero incident threatened to send the Patriots’ core into full-fledged civil war caused a stir on social media Friday morning.
Wickersham asserted that head coach Bill Belichick, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels and quarterback Brady were no longer able to work in harmony and owner Bob Kraft had been dragged into the fray — with Guerrero and his TB12 training program serving as the Yoko Ono of this split.
Wrote Wickersham:
Few in the building had a problem with Brady’s method — mostly based on stretching with bands, eating lots of vegetables, drinking lots of water, getting lots of sleep and, most of all, achieving peak “pliability.” They did have a problem with what Brady and Guerrero promised the TB12 Method could do. They claimed it could absolve football of responsibility for injury: “When athletes get injured, they shouldn’t blame their sport,” Brady wrote. The method also was so consuming and unwavering in its rules and convictions that, while it helped some players, it felt “like a cult” to others, one Patriots staffer says. The way TB12 began to creep into Brady’s life worried people close to the QB, many of whom were suspicious of Guerrero. “Tom changed,” says a friend of Brady’s. “That’s where a lot of these problems started.”
Of course, his article, which essentially claimed the sky is falling, that somehow the Patriots are breaking apart even as they just went 13-3, winning 11 of their last 12, and are the betting favorites to win the Super Bowl, had its own set of plausibility problems.
And that’s where Guerrero comes in. He went public with his side of the story Friday.
In a letter that truly has to be skimmed to be believed, Guerrero managed to write 449 words without actually saying anything.
He begins:
Over the past few years, many people have tried to paint a picture of who I am. But none of these pictures has been complete.
Oh boy. The “you don’t truly know me” card. Buckle up, kids.
I get that many of my beliefs are not mainstream and I know they may differ from others’.
Well, yes, because reality got the kids and the dog when your opinions divorced from it.
But they reflect my experience from over 22 years of practice working with some of the best athletes in the world. I understand that some people may disagree with me about how to treat injuries or how to train in order to maximize potential. I welcome this and think it is normal and healthy in all careers, because it helps everyone learn, grow, and improve.
Without a shred of scientific evidence to back up any one of your methods. The plural of “anecdote” is not “data,” and people disagree with you because their methods stand up to peer review and pass the “repeatable and testable” criteria that separate science from tomfoolery.
Throughout my career I have been blessed to work with many remarkable athletes in a variety of sports. With every one of these clients, my only goal has been to help them bring forth positive changes in their body & mind.
So you’re a yes man. Got it. You stroke a guy’s ego long enough, he’s going to think you’re his best friend. The moment you stop, Brady’s going to think of you like Donald Trump now thinks of Steve Bannon.
I have always tried to be respectful of the staff each player answers to, and I have never tried to create divisiveness or conflict.
Except you’re going over the heads of that staff and encouraging your players to contradict their orders.
My ultimate goal has always been to do my very best to help the player get back on the field and help their team. I have never had any motive other than that. My approach is and always has been to give people information based on my beliefs — then let them follow their own path toward what they believe works best for them. Ultimately every decision is up to each individual athlete.
“Based on my beliefs.” Not on science or accepted medical practice. And “following their own path” is pretty much the definition of acting against the best interests of an organizational structure. Organizations work on authority and structure. That’s what makes them organized. A fine way for an army to lose a war is to let every soldier just do what he wants instead of what his commanding officer tells him.
Many of the athletes I have worked with I consider not only clients, but also close friends. One of those is Tom Brady with whom I have a great friendship that I cherish. It is a privilege working alongside someone with his commitment and discipline. Watching Tom succeed as he grows older has been a personal and professional highlight, because I consider seeing players’ and clients’ achievements in their own careers to be the most gratifying part of my work.
Of course. The charlatan needs testimonials. You snowed Brady and he’s been as good for you as John Travolta and Tom Cruise are for David Miscavige. The con man lives and dies by the good fortune of his most famous mark.
Thank you to everyone who has supported me in my career, and to the professional organizations that have allowed me to treat their players — including the New England Patriots. I am grateful to Robert Kraft and his coaches and staff.
“And his coaches and staff.” C’mon, if you’re going to try not to look like you got called out on your crap, the least you could do is mention Belichick by name.
I am proud to have co-founded the TB12 Sports Therapy Center with Tom, where we’re able to make a daily impact in thousands of people’s lives.
Have you remembered to thank P.T. Barnum as well?
Finally, my deepest gratitude goes to my family, clients, and friends. It’s because of you that I do what I do, and it’s the greatness you achieve that continues to motivate me. I wish nothing but the best for everyone and for each of us to be able to live our lives to our utmost potential.
I’m sure Walter White was grateful to the enablers of his customers too.
As for Wickersham’s attempts to cast Brady’s Week 13 sideline blowup at McDaniels as a sign that Guerrero is the Rasputin to Czar Brady, turning him against his own team, one need look no further than the reaction of actual Patriots fans:
My favorite part of the whole article was using Tom's explosion at McDaniels as evidence for anything. That's Tom. He does that at least once every season. Watch the patriots games you national media stooge.
— sweezy le flop (@swarbleflop) January 5, 2018
And Brady’s agent had a rebuke of Wickersham’s journalistic chops:
Statement from Tom Brady’s agent, Don Yee, on ESPN report about #Patriots power struggle: "I don't really know what to say — it's tough to have a response since it didn't appear to me to have one on-the-record quote. All I can suggest is don't believe everything you read."
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 5, 2018
But it got a response out of Alex Guerrero. Even if that response was 449 words of mealymouthed self-aggrandizement and pandering.
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