Tom Brady “re-aggravated” a left shoulder injury versus the Buccaneers, per CSNNE’s Mike Giardi

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady missed practice on Tuesday and CSNNE’s Mike Giardi has the scoop on why Brady was absent.

“Tom Brady injured his left shoulder vs Carolina,’ Giardi tweeted, “and re-aggravated said injury in Tampa.”

Brady was hit 6 times and sacked 3 times against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and was hit 7 times and sacked 3 times against the Carolina Panthers. There is no shortage of possible plays where Brady could have suffered an injury...

...but it seems likely that the sack by Clinton McDonald just 9 minutes into the game was the hit that caused the re-aggravation.

Fortunately the injury is to Brady’s left shoulder, which is his non-throwing shoulder. NEPD’s Mike Loyko shared a rumor that it might be “a separated Left Shoulder,” but we might not hear any confirmation on that front. Loyko notes that Brady is unlikely “sit out” because of the injury.

A shoulder separation is the same category of injury that sidelined Jimmy Garoppolo in 2016, with the only differences being the possible severity of the injury and that Garoppolo injured his throwing shoulder.

It’s a good thing that the Patriots have a long week of practice so Brady can heal as much as possible.

Prior to facing the Panthers, Brady even mentioned how he tried to land on his left shoulder to protect his throwing arm.

“You do have to learn how to find the way down in a way that you'll be able to get up and try to play the next play, especially with your right shoulder,” Brady said. “I think for me more than anything I try to land more on my left shoulder than my right shoulder because you've only got one right shoulder and I need this for a lot of throws, and the more hits you take on it then the harder it is to take. I just do the best I can do. There's some luck involved, but let's go again, baby. Let's line them up and play.”

Hopefully the injury remains minor, heals quickly, and doesn’t cause Brady to miss any time.

UPDATE: According to CSNNE’s Tom Curran, Brady missed practice to get “an MRI performed on his left shoulder.”

“The MRI came back negative and Brady should be ready to practice this week and play Sunday against the Jets,” Curran notes.

UPDATE: The Boston Herald’s Karen Guregian reports the injury is “considered a left shoulder irritation,” and noted the injury was “minor.”

UPDATE: Giardi confirmed the injury is “an AC joint sprain for Brady. Not expected to miss time.” This is the same injury that forced Garoppolo to the sideline in 2016, but Brady should not miss any time. Garoppolo injured his throwing shoulder, while Brady hurt his non-throwing shoulder.

We’ll update this story with more information when it’s available.