New England Patriots' Tom Brady stays quiet on condition of hand

Tom Brady wore red gloves when he addressed the media Friday, but the New England Patriots quarterback was not interested in talking about his injured right hand.

Or much of anything else.

When asked how confident he is in playing in Sunday's AFC Championship Game against the visiting Jacksonville Jaguars, Brady said: "We'll see."

Brady, who practiced on a limited basis Friday and was listed as questionable, also offered a short answer when asked about the nature of the injury and repeated the same line of, "I'm not talking about it," when asked if he threw footballs during practice.

The injury occurred during Wednesday's practice when Brady jammed his throwing hand after a teammate accidentally ran into him, according to the Boston Herald. X-rays showed no structural damage.

Multiple media outlets reported that the injury is to Brady's thumb. The NFL Network reported that Brady's thumb was gushing blood and stitches were required to close the gash, but a source told the station that the quarterback was "zinging it pretty good" during Friday's practice.

Mike Felger of WBZ in Boston reported that Brady needed four stitches to close the cut, and Tom Curran of NBC Sports Boston reported that Brady's right thumb was bent back severely when a running back ran into Brady on Wednesday. Curran said the ball was pushed into the webbing between Brady's thumb and index finger, causing the cut.

The tight-lipped Brady was spotted on the field at the start of Friday's practice wearing the red gloves on both hands. The 40-year-old also was at practice Thursday, but did not participate because of the injury.

Like Brady, coach Bill Belichick wasn't too forthcoming in regard to the status of the quarterback in his Friday morning press conference.

Belichick repeatedly told reporters that the Patriots are "going to get ready for Jacksonville" and was rather vague when specific questions were asked regarding Brady's injury.

For instance, when asked how Brady's status complicates the game plan, Belichick said: "I don't know." A follow-up question was answered by Belichick with a similar response.

"I don't know. We'll see," he said.

Cornerback Malcolm Butler, who made the game-clinching interception at the goal line in Super Bowl XLIX against Seattle, told reporters that Brady looked good in practice.

"Tom's a big boy. He'll be there (Sunday)," Butler said, per the Providence Journal. "He looked pretty good to me. Throwing pretty good. Laughing and joking like he always does."

Wide receiver Danny Amendola, who had 11 receptions in last weekend's 35-14 drubbing of Tennessee, echoed the sentiments of Butler.

"He looked good. Like Tom Brady," Amendola said.

Added running back Dion Lewis: "From what I've seen it was a normal day -- for us as a team and him."

Brady reportedly took all the snaps at Friday's practice out of the shotgun to help avoid aggravating the thumb injury, NBC Sports Boston reported.

New England has won five Super Bowl titles with Brady as the starter. He won his fourth Super Bowl MVP award last season, rallying the Patriots from a 25-point second-half deficit in a 34-28 overtime win over the Atlanta Falcons.

Brady posted his 26th postseason victory last week, recorded his 13th 300-yard postseason passing game -- extending his NFL record for both -- and also broke a tie with Joe Montana to become the all-time leader with three touchdown passes in 10 playoff games.

Journeyman Brian Hoyer, signed to a three-year contract on Nov. 1 after he was released by the San Francisco 49ers, is Brady's backup.

Hoyer, 32, served as Brady's backup from 2009 to 2011 before making stops with the Pittsburgh Steelers (2012), Arizona Cardinals (2012), Cleveland Browns (2013-14), Houston Texans (2015), Chicago Bears (2016) and 49ers (2017).

New England had four other players listed as questionable: Defensive lineman Alan Branch (knee), running backs Rex Burkhead (knee) and Mike Gillislee (knee) and offensive lineman LaAdrian Waddle. All practiced on a limited basis Friday.