TAMPA, Fla. - He may be the GOAT, but Tom Brady proved he’s also human.

The reigning Super Bowl MVP did not have his best practice and neither did his Tampa Bay teammates. Head coach Bruce Arians, known for his colorful language, described it in a word not suitable for TV. The team was back on the practice fields after a day off and it showed.

“Yeah, it wasn’t our best day,” Brady said.

Bad practice aside, Brady likes the attitude of the defending Super Bowl champs. He’s defended a title before, actually several, but most of his teammates have not. That’s where the five-time Super Bowl MVP’s expertise comes into play.

“We realize we’re starting at the bottom with everybody else,” he said. “And we’ve got to climb our way up. We’re going to have our challenges. It’s going to be an entirely different challenge this season than last year.”

Brady’s already experienced a challenge this offseason, thanks to surgery to repair a torn MCL he played with the entire 2020 season.

“It feels good now,” Brady said. “I mean, it was not my favorite offseason of all time. I haven’t had surgery in a long time, so you kind of forget the rehab process and so forth.”

Fully rehabbed, the start to his 2021 season is inching closer. Brady and company want to put this bad practice behind them and focus on the future.

“We’ve got a lot of time between now and the first game,” he said. “I always like playing as much as I can. So, try to get out here and practice better tomorrow and see if we can put together a really good day.”