Yes, it’s Super Bowl Week, but does it really feel like it?

You see a picture of Radio Row, where every major sports talk radio show in the country has a spot. Except this time it’s in a fairly empty ball room in the Tampa Convention Center, with a few tables/stations spaced far apart.

It’s the Pandemic Bowl, unfortunately. Monday was Super Bowl Media Day, which under normal circumstances would be Opening Night at the Super Bowl, a TV extravaganza. Instead, it was a bunch of Zoom availability.

But that doesn’t stop the New England interest in this, because we got a dose of both Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski yesterday, and it still seems strange to see them at the Super Bowl and not be in a Patriots uniform.

“There’s a lot of people cheering for us,” Gronkowski said of the New England region. “They’re unbelievable fans up there. … It’s pretty cool to be appreciated like that. When I was up there, I gave everything I had.”

One of his former teammates, Danny Amendola, came out and said that Brady, not any coach, is the reason the Patriots won six rings.

“When you see ‘Patriot Way’ in the dictionary, it’s gonna have Tom Brady’s name next to it,” Amendola said on First Things First on FS1. “None of those coaches threw any passes. None of those coaches caught any passes. None of those coaches made any tackles. They got guys in the right position because they watch a lot of film and spend all their time at the facility. But Tom Brady is the Patriot Way, and that’s the reason why Tom Brady’s in the Super Bowl right now and the Patriots aren’t.”

And the shots keep coming. It’s going to be a long week, and Bill Belichick should just stay in whatever warm weather spot he was supposedly in recently. Hat, shades, mask, safe. From everything.

Brady, though, is too classy to throw any shots Belichick’s way. He is the ultimate in politically correct, and recognizes the value of it.

“I have a great relationship with him,” Brady told reporters on Monday. “I’m just incredibly grateful for what he’s meant in my life as a coach. He’s everything you could ask for as a player.

“I loved my time and two incredible decades there. My football journey took me to a different place. I certainly could never have accomplished the things in my career without his support and his teachings.

“Incredible coach and mentor for me, had a lot of those in my career, but obviously he’s at the top of the list.”

So we shall see. Brady won’t have Belichick and his “teachings” helping him on Sunday. Whether he needs them or not, we’ll find out.

“I’ve been a part of that ultimate goal six other times,” Brady said of his Super Bowl victories. “They’re all different, they all meant something a little bit different to me, they’ve all been great, and unique in their own way.

“It’d just be cool to accomplish it this time. I don’t compare it to the other times, those were all magical moments in my life. … Hopefully we can finish this season strong and win a Super Bowl.”

Yes, Super Bowl week has arrived and Tom Brady is where many feel he should be, right in the thick of it all.

It’s almost like there’s a third team involved in this game, as if the Patriots were there in spirit.

Not what their fans are looking for. They’d much rather have the real deal. With Brady, they always did.

Tom King can be reached at tking@nashuatelegraph.com, or on twitter @Telegraph _TomK.

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